Benefit from Our Experience.
Profit from Our Insight.
Tamarack’s expertise is representing business owners who want to realize the value they have built.
What sets us apart is the combination of our many years of merger and acquisition execution experience with the insight of our industry partners.
Founders
With extensive careers in investment banking and financial services, Michael Kessler and Larry Gamst recognized the need for a new approach to sell-side representation. Together they formed Tamarack Partners to combine their own deep transaction expertise with real business insights of owners and operators.
Providing entrepreneurs and small business owners a more valuable sell-side advisory service.
Michael’s investment banking career began at New York based Smith Barney in 1985. In 1992 he moved to Minneapolis to join the partners of Wessels, Arnold & Henderson, an institutional investment banking firm serving high growth / emerging market companies. During his career, he has specialized in healthcare, technology and industrials, underwriting IPO’s, raising private capital and advising on mergers and acquisitions. For the past 15 years he has focused exclusively on advising private business owners in mergers and acquisitions. He has sat on several charitable boards, include the United Health Foundation and Children’s Cancer Research.
Michael married Kathy in 1990 and they have two wonderful children – one in New York City and one in Montreal. Michael loves a fine restaurant and a good golf course but mostly a family reunion. He is a graduate of St. John’s College Annapolis and received his MBA from Columbia University. He served active duty in the Marine Corps in the late 70’s.
Larry led DS&B, a Twin Cities based financial and tax advisory firm that grew significantly under his leadership. During this time, Larry has been a trusted advisor to leaders and owners of public and private companies and high net worth individuals, assisting with strategic planning, operations, financing, succession and mergers & acquisitions. He and a small team of investors also acquired or invested in numerous private companies. He has served on the board of several for-profit and non-profit entities including the Boys and Girls Clubs of St. Paul, United Hospital Foundation, Kowalski 4 Kids and H2O Innovation.
Larry is an accomplished guitarist and musician and actively performs at informal venues. He is married to his lovely wife Antonella and has a son, daughter and grandchild in Minneapolis. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota and served active duty marine corps in the 1970’s.
Industry Partners
Our industry partners are an invaluable resource — entrepreneurs and business owners who have founded, grown and sold businesses just like yours. Your Tamarack team will quickly understand your business model and its KPIs, appreciate your markets and challenges, tailor your story to its highest value for prospective buyers and gain buyer access more quickly. Tamarack’s counsel and advice includes the “seller’s perspective” of operators who have sold their own businesses - their insights and guidance goes well beyond deal terms.
Your Tamarack team includes industry entrepreneurs and executives who have started, grown and sold businesses.
Why Tamarack?
Over the course of our careers, we have executed well over a hundred transactions at large investment banking platforms and small boutique M&A advisors. What we know is that the combination of transaction expertise with industry intelligence best serves the client. At Tamarack we can provide that combination. Most boutique M&A advisors simply don’t have the resources to do this well across a variety of industries.
Our expertise in M&A execution with our industry operator’s insight and intelligence lets us punch well above our weight.
Industry Focus & Domain Expertise
Healthcare
Pharma Outsourced, Software, HCIT, Medical Devices & Equipment, Insurance, Practice Management, Post-Acute Models
Technology
Tech-Enabled Business Services, Application Software, Software as a Service, Business Intelligence / Analytics, Cloud: AWS, Azure
Special Situations
Specialty Manufacturing, Distribution, Engineer Products, Industrial Services, Environmental
Transactions
The founders and industry partners of Tamarack have significant M&A experience in our focus industries.
Healthcare
We have done it: from health informatics to interventional medicine, from cardiac mapping to patient engagement, and more.
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Technology
We have done it: from education applications to big data tools, from software as a service to mobile apps, and more.
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Special Situations
We have done it: from systems integration to micro stamping, from environmental remediation to border security, and more.
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The Burchfield Group, a leader in pharmacy benefit consulting, auditing and health plan compliance services, was acquired by Aon, Inc.
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Endocardial Solutions, a developer of a software mapping system used for the navigation and localization in atrial fibrillation ablation, sold to St. Jude.
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Synovis, a developer of medical devices used primarily in surgical procedures for soft tissue repair, was sold to Baxter International.
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Top Tool Company, a manufacturer of complex precision stamped components primarily for medical devices, sold to Cirtec Medical LLC.
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Zyga, a developer and producer of minimally invasive medical devices to treat conditions of the lumbar spine, was sold to RTI Surgical, Inc.
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Gentra, a manufacturer of nucleic acid purification reagents and instruments for clinical and clinical research laboratories, was sold to Qiagen.
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Medicode, a provider of claims adjudication software and databases for healthcare providers and insurance companies, was sold to UnitedHealthGroup.
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Acist Medical Systems Inc., the leader in the field of advanced injection systems for contrast media, was sold to Bracco Group.
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PowerObjects, a professional services firm providing service, support, education and add-ons for Microsoft Dynamics CRM was acquired by HCL Technologies.
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Mednet, an SaaS-based eClinical software technology company, was recapitalized by Arrowroot and Cohesive Capital Partners.
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Zepol, a provider of US import and export competitive intelligence, market research, lead generation, sourcing, and trade compliance, was sold to Datamyne.
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Sanovia Corporation, a provider of automated decision-making technology health plan pharmaceutical administration, was sold to Health Information Design.
CloseMedicode, a provider of claims adjudication software and databases for healthcare providers and insurance companies, was sold to UnitedHealthGroup.
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Fair Isaac sold its bill review and medical cost containment technology to the workers compensation industry to Mitchell Corporation.
CloseFair Isaac sold its bill review and medical cost containment technologysold to the workers compensation industry to Mitchell Corporation.
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Cirus Controls, a provider of controls and systems for the winter road maintenance industry was acquired by Certified Power, Inc.
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St. Anthony Publishing, a provider of health information for the coding, reimbursement, and managed care industries, was acquired by UnitedHealth.
CloseTop Tool Company, a manufacturer of complex precision stamped components primarily for medical devices, sold to Cirtec Medical LLC.
CloseContact Us
Tamarack Partners
60 S. 6th Street #2625
Minneapolis, MN 55402
612.361.2060 phone
contact@tamarackpartners.net
© Tamarack Business Partners, L.L.C. dba Tamarack Partners