Avista Back Again in OTC and Personal Care Sector with Buy from Audax

Avista Capital Partners has closed its acquisition of WellSpring Consumer Healthcare from Audax Private Equity.

WellSpring Consumer Healthcare is a marketer of over-the-counter and cosmetic brands in the first aid, therapeutic skincare and digestive health categories. The company’s portfolio of brands, many of which occupy the #1 or #2 positions in their market segments, include Bactine (first aid), Bonine (motion sickness), Emetrol (anti-nausea), and Glaxal Base (therapeutic skincare), and five other OTC brands. All these brands are widely distributed across the food, drug, mass, and club retail channels in the United States and Canada.

WellSpring, led by CEO Chris Brown, was founded in April 1999 and is headquartered in Sarasota, Florida.

“We are thrilled to be working closely with Avista, whose deep experience partnering with healthcare companies, particularly in the consumer healthcare sector, will propel us forward as we execute on new product innovation, distribution expansion, and strategic acquisitions,” said Mr. Brown. “In collaboration with Avista and the retail community, we are excited to continue growing our differentiated and trusted brands in these important needs-based categories.”

Avista has previously invested in the over-the-counter and personal care brands sector. In May 2018, the firm acquired Kramer Laboratories and a month later completed the add-on acquisition of Nizoral from Janssen Pharmaceutica, a unit of Johnson & Johnson. In October 2019, Kramer Laboratories changed its name to Arcadia Consumer Healthcare, and in March 2020 it acquired the US rights to the Kaopectate brand from Sanofi. In September 2021, Avista sold the Arcadia platform to Bansk Group, an investor in consumer brands. Other Avista investments in the consumer healthcare space include Cooper Consumer Health, a Europe-based OTC drug manufacturer and distributor, Trimb Healthcare, a Sweden-based developer and marketer of OTC medicines, and Vision Healthcare, a Europe-based omni-channel consumer healthcare platform.

“Our acquisition of WellSpring represents another compelling opportunity for Avista to invest in the highly attractive consumer healthcare sector, following our recent success with Arcadia Consumer Healthcare,” said Alex Yu, a partner at Avista. “We are excited to partner with Chris Brown and the WellSpring team, and leverage our industry experience, operational expertise and financial resources to help accelerate WellSpring’s growth with investments in innovation, market expansion, and strategic acquisitions. The diversified and highly-established nature of WellSpring’s product portfolio, coupled with a strong innovation pipeline and exciting growth opportunities in e-commerce, provides an excellent foundation.”

New York City-based Avista makes control or influential minority investments in growth-oriented healthcare businesses with a specific interest in pharmaceuticals, medical devices, outsourced pharmaceutical services, distribution, and consumer-driven healthcare. In March 2021, the firm held a final, oversubscribed and hard cap close of Avista Capital Partners V LP with total committed capital of $1.2 billion.

Audax invests in middle-market companies that have from $8 million to $50 million in EBITDA and enterprise values of $50 million to $400 million. Sectors of interest include business and consumer services; energy; healthcare; technology, media and telecom; and industrials including chemicals, infrastructure, and building materials. Audax, with offices in Boston, New York, and San Francisco, is currently investing out of its $3.5 billion, sixth private equity fund.

© 2022 Private Equity Professional | August 25, 2022