Svoboda Capital Partners has added Justin Demes to its investment team as a Principal. He will be responsible for sourcing and evaluating potential investment opportunities, leading due diligence, structuring and negotiating transactions, and managing portfolio company investments.

Prior to joining Svoboda Capital, Mr. Demes was a partner at Grand Crossing Capital, a family-office backed private equity firm, where he spent 4 years as an operator and investor in consumer products businesses.

Mr. Demes began his career as a consumer-focused investment banker at Robert W. Baird. Mr. Demes then led corporate development for RC2, a publicly traded infant, toy and collectibles company with a portfolio of brands, including Thomas & Friends, John Deere, The First Years and Lamaze. At RC2, he led the execution of eight strategic transactions and as well as licensing and joint venture initiatives. In 2012, RC2 was sold to TOMY, one of the largest toy companies in the world.

“We are excited to add Justin to the team. He is a great cultural fit for our organization and believes in what we are building. With valuable investment banking, corporate development and operations, and family office investing experience, Justin will add significant value to our portfolio companies while being a tremendous help in generating deal flow and developing investor relationships,” said Svoboda Capital Managing Directors, John Svoboda and Jeff Piper in a released statement.

Svoboda Capital invests from $10 million to $20 million in business services, value-added distribution, and consumer products companies that have revenues from $10 million to $100 million and EBITDAs from $3 million to $15 million. The Chicago-based firm was founded in 1998 and has over $400 million of capital under management (www.svoco.com).

© 2018 Private Equity Professional | October 29, 2018