Mason Wells has closed on the acquisition of Whitehall Specialties, a producer of cheese products. Co-investing with Mason Wells on this transaction were Northleaf Capital, PPM America, Audax Mezzanine and the management of Whitehall.
“Mason Wells is delighted to be partnering with Whitehall Specialties to continue expanding its market reach and developing new products,” said Greg Myers, senior managing director of Mason Wells. “Whitehall has a tremendous reputation in the market due to its dedicated employees, and a culture devoted to serving its customers with the highest quality products.”
Whitehall Specialties is a producer and marketer of analog and processed cheese products. Analog, or imitation, cheese is used in a variety of food processing, food service, and retail applications. Analog cheese products contain a blend of natural dairy and non-dairy ingredients. Whitehall offers a complete line of products including block, shredded, dried and grated, individually wrapped slices, and slice-on-slice. Whitehall’s products are sold worldwide as branded and private label retail products, and are also sold as ingredients to food processors and food service providers. Whitehall was founded in 1994 and operates from three production facilities, two in Whitehall, WI (headquarters) and one in Hillsboro, WI (www.whitehall-specialties.com).
“We are excited about our new partnership with Mason Wells and believe its experience in supporting growth-oriented businesses by bringing additional resources to the table will benefit Whitehall’s customers, suppliers and employees, and enable us to grow globally,” said Steve Fawcett, Whitehall’s President and CEO.
Senior financing for the transaction was led by BMO Capital Markets, and mezzanine financing was provided by Audax.
Mason Wells makes investments in Midwest-based companies with $25 million to $300 million in revenues and an EBITDA of at least $5 million. Sectors of interest include consumer packaged goods, packaging materials & converting, engineered products & services and outsourced business services. The firm was founded in 1982 and is based in Milwaukee, WI (www.masonwells.com).
© 2012 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 11-27-12