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The partnership will focus on organic and inorganic growth and enhancement of the Tropolis platform
DALLAS—October 12, 2023 — Unity Partners LP (“Unity Partners”), a principles-based middle market investment firm, today announced a strategic partnership and collaboration with insurance industry experts and co-founders of Tropolis, Jeff Mason, CEO, Jim Ryans, CFO, and Ben Calnin, CTO. Tropolis is a platform headquartered in Ann Arbor, Mich. that aims to acquire independent insurance brokerage firms providing property & casualty (P&C) and employee benefits solutions.
The U.S. insurance brokerage market is both resilient and highly fragmented and is estimated to be a $146 billion industry. Tropolis is focused on building a platform that will enable its insurance agency partners to provide the best insurance solutions for the families and businesses that power the metropolis we call home. By bringing together great people and innovative technologies, Tropolis partner agencies will realize the benefits of increased scale, shared resources and new growth opportunities.
“This partnership is a great example of our ‘Partner & Propel’ strategy, as we see a prime opportunity to bring on additional expertise and resources to Tropolis,” said John Block, CEO and Co-Founder of Unity Partners. “We’re confident that Jeff and the Tropolis team are the ideal partners to execute strategic M&A. We’ve been actively collaborating with them to build a pipeline of strong partner agencies that will help realize our goal of building an industry-leading platform.”
Mason has extensive experience in the insurance industry, having previously established the insurance technology platform Groundspeed Analytics prior to founding Tropolis in 2023.
“After quickly aligning on a shared vision of partnering to evaluate attractive growth opportunities in the insurance brokerage market, we’re excited about Unity’s abilities to help us execute on this strategy,” said Mason. “We anticipate the partnership will open new avenues for brokerages to accelerate growth through technology and shared resources, while creating ownership opportunities for their employees.”
Employee ownership is a critical piece of each of Unity Partners’ platform investments. In connection with its partnership with Unity Partners, Tropolis intends to launch a Purpose Plan, a program that will allow employees of partner agencies to share in Tropolis’ financial success and capital events.
“With my experience in this sector, I’ve seen the impact that technology can have on businesses across the insurance industry,” said Bryan W. Adams, Co-Founder and Chairman of Unity Partners, and CEO of Integrity Marketing Group, one of the nation’s leading independent distributors of life and health insurance products. “The Tropolis platform and data-first approach will be a significant enhancement for smaller agencies, and we’re thrilled to see the value that they can bring to partner agencies to help streamline operations and accelerate growth.”
Tropolis is the third partnership for Unity in 2023 following previously announced investments in NDH and Poolie.
About Tropolis
Tropolis Insurance is a national insurance brokerage at the forefront of innovation, utilizing technology and data to accelerate growth; improve employee recruiting and retention; and deliver best-in-class customer experience. Our passion is to provide the best insurance solutions for the families, small business and national commercial enterprises that power the metropolis we all call home. It’s why we chose the name Tropolis. We deliver on this passion by partnering with insurance agencies across the United States, collaborating to deliver impeccable products and service offerings to their diverse clientele. Through partnership with our capital providers and agency owners, Tropolis is transforming the way retail insurance operates, expanding markets, enhancing efficiency, and fostering growth in a rapidly evolving insurance landscape. For more information, visit www.tropolis.us.
About Unity Partners
Unity Partners is a principles-based private equity firm that partners with investors and operators to build better together, measured by the economic surplus we create and share with all stakeholders. Our principles provide a foundation to build great people-based services and technology organizations that impact thousands of lives. We deploy our Partner & Propel strategy to identify opportunities to Partner with ambitious leaders to accelerate growth, unlock the benefits of platform scale through mergers and acquisitions and Propel value acceleration through investments in people, processes and operational levers. For more information, visit www.unitypartnerslp.com.
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Trevor Blaisdell
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TBlaisdell@StantonPRM.com