Investment Partner Secured for The Pillars Christian Learning Centers
Since opening The Pillars Christian Learning Centers in 2009 with a single location in San Antonio to meet the needs of their own children, founders Geren and Melissa Anderson have focused on serving other families with premier, faith-based early childhood education. Parents have embraced their model enthusiastically, and over the last decade, the school has expanded into 14 additional centers in the Greater San Antonio and Dallas-Fort Worth areas. The Pillars serves infants through Pre-K, plus school-age and enrichment programs, and it has been named Best Preschool/Daycare in 2023 by the San Antonio Express-News and The Dallas Morning News. The company is also ranked on the Inc. 5000 list of America's fastest-growing companies.
Recognizing the opportunity to bring their framework to even more communities within and outside of Texas, the Andersons teamed up with HINGE Advisors to find the right equity partner and accelerate their growth. To secure an equity partner that would embrace their Christian-based model and add value beyond a capital investment, The Pillars tapped the team at HINGE to market the opportunity to our extensive network of early education investors. The Pillars ultimately selected a leading investor in the education sector. HINGE also identified turnkey acquisition opportunities to bring new schools readily into The Pillars portfolio as part of the equity deal.
The marketing, negotiations, transaction, and closing of the equity sale were led by HINGE Founder & CEO Kathy Ligon; Transaction Team Leader Alec Ligon; Transaction Advisor Nan Rikard; Transaction Advisor Mike Pepper; Diligence Manager Carrie Pergerson; Senior Financial Analyst Rusty Bailey; and Coordinator Marissa Webster.
"Scaling an early education business is no easy feat," says Rikard. "Geren and Melissa have done such an impressive job building The Pillars and laying the groundwork for smart, purposeful growth. Connecting them with an equity partner that brings such complementary expertise into the fold is an ideal match."
If you’re ready to accelerate the growth of your early education brand, get in touch with the HINGE team today at info@hingeadvisors.com to see how we can help.