Ex-Grubhub execs Matt Maloney, Adam DeWitt and Eric Ferguson join Honk to scale the industry’s most advanced roadside and accident-management platform

CHICAGO: #insurtech--Honk Technologies (“Honk”), the technology-enabled service provider transforming roadside assistance and vehicle logistics, today announced the sale of its business to Frontenac, a Chicago-based private equity firm. At the closing of this transaction, Honk completed a strategic add-on acquisition of CurbsideSOS, bringing together two companies focused on building the next generation of digital infrastructure for roadside assistance, accident management, and mobility services.

Going forward the combined business will be led and managed by former members of the Grubhub leadership team including, Adam DeWitt, CEO of Honk and former CEO of Grubhub, Matt Maloney, Chairman of Honk and founder of Grubhub, Eric Ferguson, COO of Honk and former CEO of Grubhub, and Morgan Hughes, CFO of Honk and former CFO of Cambly and senior finance executive at Grubhub. Collectively, this team brings a proven track record of scaling complex logistics systems and a focus on operational excellence across large-scale organizations.

Maloney founded Grubhub and, together with DeWitt and Ferguson, built it into one of the largest logistics marketplaces in the world, pioneering technology that connected tens of millions of consumers with businesses and service providers to deliver products from order to doorstep in less than 40 minutes. This experience will help accelerate Honk’s mission to modernize roadside assistance and towing services through AI-powered optimized dispatch, real-time transparency, and a more connected provider network.

Roadside assistance is evolving from a manual, closed-network service into a real-time logistics layer because of increasing connectivity and customer expectations. This is especially important for insurance carriers, OEMs and fleets, who are under growing pressure to improve response times, control costs, increase visibility, and deliver a better customer experience across both roadside and claims-related events.

“As we looked across the roadside industry, Honk’s technology platform stood out for transforming how roadside services are delivered,” said Adam DeWitt, incoming CEO of Honk. “We are excited to build on Honk’s progress by being the best partner to every side of the network: enterprise partners, roadside service providers, and of course, motorists.”

Over the past decade, Honk has built a fully digital roadside logistics platform designed to replace legacy call-center dispatch and closed provider networks with a real-time, intelligent network. Honk dynamically connects the best available service providers based on location, performance, and job fit, while giving enterprise partners complete visibility into service performance, cost, and customer experience. This model enables a faster, more transparent roadside experience for drivers and a more scalable, efficient operating model for insurers, automakers, fleets, and mobility platforms.

Honk founder Corey Brundage said the acquisition accelerates what his team has spent years building. “We focused on solving the hardest problems in enterprise roadside assistance-secondary tows, accident handling, and transparency,” he said. “Combining that work with CurbsideSOS’s scale and leadership creates something the industry hasn’t had before.”

Maloney, who founded Grubhub leading to its sale to Just Eat Takeaway.com in 2021 for $7.5 billion, said the parallels to food delivery are structural. “Both are time-critical, local services powered by small operators. When logistics and incentives are designed correctly, the experience improves for everyone involved.” Maloney further noted, “While not food delivery, roadside assistance is a true three-sided network. We know from our history that focusing on carriers’, motorists’, and service providers' unique needs will create a better experience and more value for everyone.”

About Honk

Honk is a technology platform powering roadside assistance, accident management, and vehicle logistics for insurers, automotive OEMs, fleets, and mobility providers. Its AI-powered dispatch and service management platform connects drivers with a nationwide network of service providers in real time, delivering faster service, greater transparency, and a more efficient, multi-source operating model for enterprise partners.

About Frontenac

Frontenac is a Chicago-based private equity firm. The firm focuses on investing in lower middle market buyout transactions in the consumer, industrial, and services industries. Frontenac works in partnership with established operating leaders, through an executive-centric approach called CEO1ST®, which seeks to identify, acquire, and build market-leading companies through transformational acquisitions and operational excellence. Over the last 55 years, Frontenac has built a franchise working with over 350 owners of mid-sized businesses as they address complex transition issues of liquidity, management enhancement, and growth planning. For more information, please visit www.frontenac.com.

Fonte: Business Wire