Catterton Partners today announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell MonoSol, a manufacturer of water-soluble films used in consumer applications, including automatic dishwasher and laundry detergent unit-dose soluble delivery systems, to Kuraray Co. “Catterton has been a tremendous partner for us,” said MonoSol CEO P. Scott Bening. “In addition to providing consumer insight on our end markets, Catterton helped guide us through substantial investments in capital expansion, product innovation, and marketing activities to underpin our growth.”
MonoSol offers a range of water-soluble delivery systems for unit-dose applications for consumer, agricultural chemicals and industrial products, release films, transfer printing, embroidery support films, water-soluble laundry bags, edible films and TerraLOC, a dust abatement system. The company was founded in 1953 and is based in Merrillville, IN with manufacturing facilities in Portage, IN; La Porte, IN; and Hartlebury, UK (www.monosol.com) (www.terraloc.com).
Since investing in MonoSol in 2007, Catterton Partners has worked with the MonoSol management team to develop and enhance its technology in water-soluble films, a development that has driven consumer adoption of unit-dose (single serve) delivery in multiple applications. Most notably, MonoSol’s environmentally sustainable MonoDose delivery systems has been an innovation in the automatic dishwasher and laundry detergent markets where consumers have embraced the convenience of such brands as Cascade ActionPacs and Tide Pods.
“We are proud of the significant growth and success we were able to achieve working with the management team at MonoSol. MonoSol’s leading technologies, strong customer relationships and track record of innovation have allowed the company to enjoy tremendous success,” said Scott Dahnke, Managing Partner at Catterton Partners. “This transaction represents a terrific outcome for MonoSol, Kuraray and Catterton, and we are confident that MonoSol will continue to thrive under new ownership. Moreover, we continue to pursue opportunities to invest in leading companies which offer proprietary ingredients and vital technologies to the consumer industry, such as MonoSol.”
Morgan Stanley & Co. acted as financial advisor to MonoSol in connection with the transaction.
Founded in 1989, Catterton Partners focuses exclusively on the consumer industry. The firm invests in all major consumer segments, including Food and Beverage, Retail and Restaurants, Consumer Products and Services, and Media and Marketing Services. The firm has more than $2.5 billion in capital under management and is located in Greenwich, CT (www.cpequity.com).
