Ritter Communications Partners with Grain Management

A new investor will allow Ritter Communications to accelerate the expansion of its fiber network plans.

Ritter Communications, which operates in Arkansas and Millington, Tennessee, near Memphis, signed an agreement with Grain Management, a private equity firm that invests in global communications.

According to the agreement, Grain Management will acquire a majority stake in Ritter Communications and help accelerate growth.

Grain Founder and Chief Executive David J. Grain praised Ritter’s market position, management team and strong, local heritage.

“We appreciate the trust the Ritter family has placed in Grain as its preferred partner,” he says, “Investing and partnering with companies like Ritter Communications is what we do best, and we are excited to be spearheading a plan for accelerated growth while preserving the Ritter Communications customer-oriented culture.”

Ritter Communications’ recently announced $7 million broadband fiber infrastructure project in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and the construction of its state-of-the-art Data Technology Center on its campus in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Ritter Communications has invested over $100 million in local expansion over the last 10 years and today boasts one of the largest, high-capacity fiber optic networks in the region.

The E. Ritter family has owned Ritter Communications for five generations since it began providing local telephone service in 1906. Since then, Ritter Communications has evolved its offering to include communication services to enterprise and wholesale customers, while maintaining its unwavering dedication to the residential communities it has served for more than a century. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2019.