DETROIT, Mich., May 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Charthouse Holdings LLC (“Charthouse”), which was recently established by a leading private investment firm to offer differentiated supply chain solutions, today announced the closing of its acquisition of Pronto Freight Ways, LLC (“Pronto”) of Taylor, Michigan. Pronto has supported the freight forwarding industry for more than 25 years. The company provides one-stop service for time-sensitive and mission critical air freight, local cartage, drayage and warehousing. Pronto has approximately 100 employees and a second location in Chicago. The Company also offers daily consolidation service between Detroit Metropolitan Airport and Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Old National Bank, headquartered in Evansville, Indiana and Chicago, Illinois, served as Charthouse’s senior lender. Charter Growth Capital Fund II, LP of Grand Rapids, Michigan co-invested in the transaction. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
“We are thrilled to announce the acquisition of Pronto and officially welcome our new Pronto colleagues to the Charthouse family,” said Jeff Rogers, CEO of Charthouse. “Pronto is an ideal way for Charthouse to introduce its transportation thesis. The Charthouse team’s experience is highly complementary with Pronto’s service offering, and we are eager to get started. We also look forward to growing the Charthouse platform by identifying other potential partners in adjacent geographic markets and service lines that fit with our strategy.”
Rogers has over 35 years of experience in transportation and logistics. He previously served as CEO of Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: ULH). Before Universal, Rogers was President of YRC Freight and USF Holland. He also served for 14 years with United Parcel Service in various finance and operational roles. Edwin J. Lukas and Gary N. Lewis serve as Co-Chairs of Charthouse.
Paul F. Wozniak, the founder of Pronto, will continue to serve as President of Pronto. “The sale of Pronto to Charthouse opens an exciting new chapter in our mission to provide the highest level of service to our customers,” said Wozniak. “Charthouse’s experience and network will provide us access to capital, relationships, and enhanced technology, all of which will help scale our business and diversify our services. Their approach, culture and focus on investing in and accelerating employee development was also a key factor in our decision to partner with this team. We are very enthusiastic about combining the 40-year transportation know-how of Pronto with the power of the Charthouse platform.”
Edwin J. Lukas stated, “Pronto is an excellent fit and a perfect partner for Charthouse. Pronto has a terrific corporate culture, and I am confident that their employees and customers will be in good hands under Jeff and Paul’s collaborative leadership. We are excited about this important step by Charthouse, and we will continue to prioritize Pronto’s valuable customers through our relentless delivery of top-notch service.” Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP acted as legal advisor to Charthouse. Kerr, Russell and Weber, PLC acted as legal advisor to Pronto. Varnum LLP represented Old National Bank, and Bodman PLC served as legal counsel to Charter Growth Capital.