In 1998, Lake Capital's founders, Terry Graunke and Paul Yovovich, raised more than $100 million in equity from private equity firms Frontenac Company, GTCR Golder Rauner, LLC, and a number of entrepreneurial individual investors to form Lighthouse Holdings, an acquisition corporation focused on building and growing a portfolio of diversified marketing services companies.

Once equity funding was in place, an additional $100 million in debt financing was secured. The Lighthouse team then completed sixteen acquisitions in the U.S. and internationally to build a company with more than $100 million in net revenues and more than $25 million in EBITDA. Transactions focused on companies specializing in marketing and business consulting, design and brand development, promotion, direct and database marketing, and sports marketing and event management -- all high-margin, consultative service areas that allowed Lighthouse to build strategic relationships with corporate customers at the vice president of marketing level and above, resulting in numerous cross-sell opportunities that drove organic growth.

Lighthouse was acquired by Cordiant Communications Group in 2000 in a transaction valued at more than $500 million. Cordiant was subsequently acquired by WPP Group (NasdaqGS:WPPGY)