New York, NY, December 16, 2022 – NMS Capital (“NMS”) portfolio company Flourish Research (“Flourish”) is pleased to announce the acquisition of Suncoast Research Group, LLC (“Suncoast” or the “Company”). Suncoast is a leading, multi-therapeutic clinical research site based in Miami, Florida. The transaction marks the sixth investment and partnership for Flourish Research, which was formed last year. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded by Marco Ramirez and Dr. Mark Kutner in 2004, Suncoast has built its reputation as a leading clinical research site through its commitment to patients and biopharma sponsors. Based in Little Havana, the heart of Latin community in Miami, the Company focuses on increasing access to and awareness of clinical trials to a diverse population of minority patients throughout the Miami community. With Mr. Ramirez and Dr. Kutner’s leadership, each of these structural elements are enabled by Suncoast’s dedication to research integrity and patient outcomes. Suncoast’s patient-first mentality and focus on patient diversification creates immediate cultural alignment with the existing Flourish platform. Marco Ramirez, Dr. Kutner and the current management team will continue in their roles at Suncoast after the acquisition.
Marco Ramirez, Founder and CEO of Suncoast, noted, “We are excited to be a part of the Flourish network and to join in the shared vision of advancing the health of our society through clinical trials. We believe our breadth of therapeutic expertise and access to the diverse patient populations within Miami provides depth of resources and knowledge, ultimately resulting in greater value to our sponsors and patients.”
Reinhold Schulz, CEO of Flourish Research, commented, “We welcome the Suncoast team as the latest addition to Flourish’s network. Suncoast’s growth mindset combined with the focus on patient quality that we deem as essential, stood out to us throughout our conversations. Additionally, Suncoast provides us further access in the Florida market, allowing us to leverage our resources and knowledge across sites. I am excited for Suncoast to contribute to Flourish’s journey as a national leader in clinical research.”
Luis Gonzalez, Partner at NMS Capital, said, “We are thrilled to partner with Suncoast as we continue to build what is now one of the largest integrated clinical site organizations in the country. Suncoast is a continuation of our focus on partnering with best-in-class sites who have a strong brand and track- record of recruiting and retaining a highly diversified patient base across studies and therapeutic indications. Flourish’s fully integrated site network strategy with centralized infrastructure and investment in technology allows for superior patient access, engagement, and diversification as well as consistent, high quality data delivery for our biopharma customers.”
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. served as financial advisor and McDermott Will & Emery provided legal advice to Flourish and NMS.
About Flourish Research
Flourish Research was founded to address the highly fragmented clinical trial site market. By acquiring and fully integrating best-in-class sites, Flourish provides a unique opportunity to serve sponsors and CROs with increased speed and efficiency across a variety of therapeutic areas and indications, while offering a single point of entry to multiple sites. Flourish currently has locations in Florida, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Texas. For additional information on Flourish, please visit our website at https://flourishresearch.com/
About NMS Capital
Founded in 2010, NMS Capital is an experienced private equity firm managing assets in excess of $1.4 billion. Since inception, NMS has partnered with management teams in over 100 investments and follow-on acquisitions across defined investment themes within the Business Services and Healthcare Services industries. The firm’s principal strategy is to create long-term value by providing strategic and operational resources to growth-oriented companies led by founders or experienced management teams. NMS has successfully built industry leading lower middle market companies in defensible and scalable end markets by accelerating organic and acquisition-driven growth. For additional information on NMS, please visit the firm’s website at www.nms-capital.com. Follow NMS Capital on www.linkedin.com/company/nms-capital.
For further information
Jonathan Spero
Vice President
NMS Capital
(212) 574-7014
jspero@nms-capital.com