Via Auto Remarketing

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. - Billed as a “true partnership in every sense of the word,” software-as-a-service relationship management solution provider DealerSocket entered into a strategic investment relationship on Tuesday with Vista Equity Partners, a private equity firm with more than $12 billion in committed capital focused on investments in software and technology-enabled services companies.

DealerSocket recapped that it has grown from a startup software company in a garage 13 years ago to a firm with 450 employees supporting the CRM platform for franchised and independent dealerships.

DealerSocket partnered with Vista to accelerate growth and to continue to invest in product, service and operational scale.

Chief executive officer and co-founder Jonathan Ord explained the new relationship with Vista will serve as a platform to continue the DealerSocket traditions of great culture, innovation and customer service and couple it with an increased ability to scale and grow well into the future.

Ord added DealerSocket’s current management team will remain in place and continue to hold a significant ownership stake in the company in a situation he deemed as a “true partnership with Vista in every sense of the word.”

Ord went on to say, “DealerSocket is a great company with tremendous potential. We looked long and hard for a partner that could provide the type of strategic and operational support for our leadership team that would enable us to realize our full potential.

“We did not want to be acquired. Rather, we sought to find a partner that would not dilute our brand or de-energize our employees or customers as well as help us capitalize on all available opportunities for growth. This relationship with Vista accomplishes that goal and more,” he continued.

Vista founder and managing principal Robert Smith said, “We are tremendously excited about partnering with DealerSocket. We are convinced that DealerSocket is a wonderful platform company in a space that is in need of thoughtful innovation and attention to customer satisfaction.

“The company is led by a passionate management team that loves automotive and loves their customers and desires to continue the legacy of DealerSocket,” Smith went on to say.