Serent Capital Announces Acquisition of SHR by The Access Group

AUSTIN, Texas & SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Serent Capital, a growth-focused private equity firm that invests in founder-led B2B SaaS and technology companies, announced that its portfolio company, Sceptre Hospitality Resources (SHR), a leading provider of meaningful technology that helps hotels execute their best revenue generation strategies, has been acquired by The Access Group, a leading provider of business management software to small and mid-sized organizations.

Founded in 2012, SHR provides hotels with a central reservation system (CRS) to help them optimize revenue generation and deliver an exceptional guest experience. This includes a suite of products that encompass guest and revenue management and are used by thousands of hotels worldwide. Serent Capital, an active investor in the hospitality industry, made a significant growth investment in SHR in 2020.

"We initially partnered with Serent due to their deep industry expertise in the hospitality sector as well as their great reputation regarding integrity and smarts. Through their Growth Team initiatives, we were able to significantly increase our growth through a multi-product strategy," said Rod Jimenez, CEO and Co-Founder of SHR. "We look forward to joining the global, market-leading Access Group family."

Over the course of Serent’s investment, SHR has meaningfully grown its operations to serve approximately 2,000 hotels globally while evolving its suite of AI-powered products. In November 2022, SHR acquired Irish hotel tech pioneer Avvio, a provider of the world’s first AI-powered booking engine, allora.ai, since 2017. Serent Capital sponsored the acquisition of Avvio through SHR to create a technology powerhouse for independent hotels and chains with unrivaled customer support across the world.

"It has been rewarding to partner with the SHR team and help them execute their growth initiatives through go-to-market strategies, M&A, and building their team while strengthening their market-leading position in the hospitality space. We are honored to contribute to their growth journey and look forward to their continued success in the hospitality industry with The Access Group," said Dexter Hopen, Partner at Serent Capital.

The acquisition of SHR will enable Access to make further inroads into the North American market and service larger hotel groups, which often have more complex distribution needs than smaller boutique and independent operators.

Serent Capital has a robust track record in the hospitality market, having invested in over 15 hospitality tech companies in the last decade. To learn more about Serent’s partnership with hospitality companies, visit: https://serentcapital.com/hospitality-and-travel/.

William Blair served as financial advisor for Serent Capital and SHR.

About SHR

SHR leads the way as the premier global specialist technology and service provider for the hotel sector, dedicated to ensuring that their clients remain always ahead in a fast-paced and competitive market. Their primary focus is driving revenue, optimizing efficiency and enriching guest experiences. They proudly offer an AI-powered suite of comprehensive tools and digital services designed to work individually or harmoniously together, enabling hotels and resorts to fine-tune their distribution, understand guest intent and increase profitability.

About Serent Capital

Serent Capital is a growth-focused private equity firm investing in capital-efficient, B2B SaaS and technology companies. From its founding, Serent set out to build a distinctly different firm that prioritizes founders and their companies and provides true hands-on resources through its 25+ person Growth Team. Serent’s in-house Growth Team is equipped with a wide range of resources to help companies accelerate growth, including strategic and operational support to drive revenue generation, assistance in building a top-tier executive team, guidance for transformative M&A, and a community of 400+ founders and operating executives. With $5 billion of assets under management, the firm has partnered with over 60 founder-led, industry-changing companies and offers unparalleled hands-on operational support. Discover how Serent Capital is fueling the growth of innovative companies across a range of industries at www.serentcapital.com.