Mr. Valentine formed Barefoot Bull Enterprise in 2010 to leverage the business opportunities that he was already an investor in with new acquisitions. Following the investment advice of Warren Buffett to be "bold when others are fearful" the bottom of America's "Great Recession" was the perfect time to initiate the group.
Mr. Valentine's executive roles have spanned the past three decades; 1st as a Mergers & Acquisitions professional serving Invacare Corporation (NYSE:IVC) beginning in 1992, and then as a C-level executive beginning in the late 90's. During 1990's RJ traveled globally leading due diligence, negotiations, transaction execution, and post-acquisition integration of manufacturing and service companies in the Durable Medical Equipment (DME) sector for Invacare. In 1997 RJ joined a private equity group in Cleveland to serve as CFO, and later as Divisional CEO. During the late 90's through early 2000's RJ focused on portfolio company management, and the buying and selling of portfolio companies. In 2001 he joined Liqui-Box Corporation (formerly NASDAQ:LIQB) in Columbus, Ohio and shortly thereafter was a key member in the executive team that led the sale of the company to DuPont for 10 times cashflow. Joining MPW Industrial Services (formerly NASDAQ:MPWG) in 2003, RJ served as COO/CFO and ultimately quarterbacked the privatization of the company in 2006 (dubbed "Project Barefoot" as a result of the pending negative financial impact of "SOX", the Sarbanes-Oxley Act). After returning MPW to the founder and his children through the privatization, he joined the Crane Group in Columbus, Ohio to serve as CFO/VP Business Development for Exterior Portfolio by Crane, and left in 2010 to form Barefoot Bull.
In 2010 Barefoot Bull Enterprise LLC structured a deal to purchase 100% of the shares of Tritex Corporation. Additionally, in 2010, a 33% purchase of Grimesbach Properties Ltd. was completed. Tritex Corporation is a design/build fabricator that serves multiple industries including aviation, hospitality, defense, and automotive. Grimesbach Properties owns and operates commercial real estate.
Over the past three decades the total deal value of completed transactions that RJ has led, or been a member of the key deal team, exceeds $500 million. RJ has led transactions in multiple countries including the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, France, Spain, and Belgium.
Early career experience and a strong foundation in accounting, finance, and mergers & acquisitions was gained as a professional at the accounting & consulting firm of Price Waterhouse (now PwC). RJ is a graduate of Baldwin-Wallace College, and is a Certified Public Accountant (non-practicing).
In addition to his duties at Barefoot Bull, RJ serves on the board of directors of River Radio Ministries/One Connection Media. RJ has previously served on the boards of Pentagon Technologies Group Inc., a California based company in the semi-conductor industry, CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children), and Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) the global M&A group.
RJ can be reached at 614-989-7372 or rjvalentine@barefootbull.com