Central Valley Fund exits Anabi Oil investment

DAVIS, California — The Central Valley Fund (“CVF”), a private investment fund focused on middle-market companies, today announced its recent exit of an $8.5M mezzanine investment in Anabi Oil Corporation and its affiliates (“AOC” or the “Company”). CVF led the transaction with its co-investor, San Diego-based Huntington Capital, and partnered to support the Company’s acquisition of certain Shell-branded retail gasoline properties and related wholesale distribution rights in Northern and Southern California.

The transaction helped AOC expand throughout California and become the market leader in the Inland Empire. Founded in 1991 with a single station, AOC has distinguished itself as a leading station operator across any number of metrics within the Shell system for years. The acquisition of these assets coupled with AOC’s existing platform, characterized by strong operations, has allowed the company to maximize customer traffic at the retail pump and in the convenience store. Despite the statewide decline in gasoline sales and a moribund California economy, AOC has powered through these market challenges and delivered strong operating results.

The Company not only upgraded its existing owner/operator portfolio with this acquisition but also significantly expanded its revenue base by gaining rights to distribute gasoline to over eighty (80) stations throughout California. This second aspect of the transaction enabled AOC to become a major regional player with retail property interests, operational responsibilities, and wholesale distribution capabilities throughout the state.

Jose Blanco, a partner with CVF, stated, “It has been a great working relationship with the company and being a part of Anabi Oil’s expansion. Through the tireless efforts of the entire AOC team, they integrated the new stations and executed the Wholesale business beautifully. The horizon for fueling stations and distributors will remain challenging as alternative fuels emerge, more auto hybrids appear on the road, and evolving state and federal regulations requiring well-capitalized and efficient operators. Anabi Oil remains well poised to manage these challenges and thrive.”

Blanco continued by saying that “upon the launch of Central Valley Fund II in June 2012, with over $100M in committed capital, we will continue to look for similar opportunities where we can support strong operators acquire assets or competitors and capitalize on a transitioning U.S. economy”.

Media Contact:

Jose Blanco

Partner, Central Valley Fund

Ph. 530-757-7004 ext. 227

Business Forecast Set for Stockton

Michael Stead, capital markets director for Bank of the West, and Jeffrey Michael, director of the Business Forecasting Center at the University of the Pacific, will be keynote speakers for the Business Forecast Conference to be held on Jan. 19 in Stockton.

The conference, sponsored by the San Joaquin County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, will examine the tea leaves for the coming year’s economy from global, national, state, and local perspectives.

It will also feature a panel of local leaders, including Fritz Grupe, chairman and founder of The Grupe Cos.; Jose Blanco, principal of the Central Valley Fund; Bruce Blodgett, executive director of the San Joaquin Farm Bureau; and Corwin Harper, senior vice president, and area manager for Kaiser Permanente.

Mark Martinez, the Hispanic chamber’s chief executive, noted the group held its first forecast conference last year. “It really helped many of our small-business owners truly understand what was happening with their businesses,” he said.

As a result of that success, Martinez added, “This year we’re expanding on the conference to include our panelists on specific sectors.”

The conference will be at the Robert J. Cabral Agricultural Center, at 2101 E. Earhart Ave., Suite 200, Stockton, with registration and breakfast at 7:30 a.m., and the program to run from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m.

Admission is $75 per person. To make a reservation, call the chamber at (209) 943-6117.

CVF and California State University, Fresno co-host 7th Annual Central Valley Venture Forum in Fresno

The seventh edition delivered diverse topics of interest to entrepreneurs, business owners, the banking community, angel investors, venture capitalists, and private equity funds from the Central Valley region and throughout California.

Among the main topics, the event offered a Hispanic Business Success Panel, which recognized successful Central Valley Hispanic entrepreneurs and business owners discussing diverse subjects relating to how they have achieved their success. In addition, the panel shared their view on future opportunities related to current Hispanic demographics in the U.S. and exporting their products to Mexico and Asia.

A panel of three experienced investors included Ed McNulty, Principal at the Central Valley Fund, who discussed and answered questions on how to raise investment capital and relate to the investment community. The panel presented how businesses in different growth stages have different capital needs allowing venture capital, private equity funds, and investment banks to play their different roles in the financial markets ecosystem.

The event’s Keynote Speakers, CalPERS Board of Administration Member Tony Oliveira and California State Controller John Chiang, talked about the state of California’s economy and answered a diverse set of questions from attendees.

Finally, the Forum hosted its annual highlight, the “Valley Entrepreneur Showcase Competition”, where a group of entrepreneurs presented their business project to an experienced panel of judges. This year’s competition winner was Amalia’s Cocina, a Fresno based startup looking to expand the market presence of its homemade style, healthy Mexican salsa assortments.

The Forum was attended by over 200 individuals along with local media and has become a mainstay of the local business community in the San Joaquin Valley. CVF is looking forward to co-hosting next year’s event.

For more information and to obtain media coverage, please visit the following links:

http://www.valleyventureforum.com/cvvf/ – The Central Valley Venture Forum’s official website

http://univisionfresno.univision.com/videos/video/2011-11-04/-negocios-e … – Channel 21 Univisión (español), November 3, 2011.

http://www.thebusinessjournal.com/small-business/11988-amalias-cocina-na … – The Business Journal (Fresno), November 4, 2011

http://www.kmph.com/category/170789/video-landing-page?clipId=6383992&au … – channel 26, Fresno, November 3, 2011

http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/business&id=8418478 – Channel 30, Fresno, November 4, 2011