consumer brands

Tengram Closes Buy of High Ridge Brands

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Tengram Capital Partners has closed its buy of the hair care and skin cleansing business of High Ridge Brands, a portfolio company of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice.

Stamford, Connecticut-based High Ridge Brands was formed by Brynwood Partners in December 2010 to purchase the North American Zest personal cleansing brand from Procter & Gamble and to serve as a platform for further acquisitions in the personal care consumer segment. During its ownership term, Brynwood closed five add-ons including the buys of the Alberto VO5 brand in the US and Puerto Rico and the Rave brand worldwide from Unilever (August 2011); the Coast soap brand globally from Henkel (April 2012); the White Rain brand globally from Sun Products (July 2012); several small personal care brands from Newhall Laboratories (May 2015); and Continental Fragrances, the owner of the worldwide Salon Grafix and High Beams brands (October 2015).

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) acquired High Ridge from Brynwood in June 2016. In December 2016, under CD&R ownership, High Ridge acquired Dr. Fresh, a California-based provider of oral care products under the REACH (toothbrushes), Firefly (mouthwashes), and Binaca (breath fresheners) brands, from NexPhase Capital. In December 2019, High Ridge filed for bankruptcy protection after a pre-bankruptcy sales process launched in September 2019 failed to find a buyer for the business.

In February, High Ridge announced an agreement to sell its hair care and skin cleansing business, including the Zest, Alberto VO5, Coast, White Rain, and Rave brands, to Tengram; and its oral care business, which includes the REACH, Firefly, and Dr. Fresh brands, to publicly traded Perrigo (NYSE: PRGO). The sale of the oral care business to Perrigo closed last week.

“We are excited to be closed on this transaction and focused on running our business with Tengram Capital,” said James Daniels, president and CEO of High Ridge. Mr. Daniels was High Ridge’s CEO from 2011 to 2017 and he now returns to the company in partnership with Tengram. “While we are in unprecedented times, our strategy is clear and focused. We plan to reinvest in our team, strengthen the relationships across our supply chain, and ensure that customer service is once again priority one. Further, as the country unites to fight the Coronavirus, we plan to step up and do our part as well. This means ensuring that our supply chains remain efficient and our soap products specifically are getting into the hands of consumers and those medical providers on the front lines.”

The buy of the hair care and skin cleansing business establishes a new platform investment for Tengram in the consumer-focused hair and skin category. Tengram partnered with Hilco, Inc., an affiliate of Hilco Global to acquire the company.

“The closing of the acquisition of High Ridge’s hair care and skin cleansing brands begins a new chapter for the company; zero debt, cash on the balance sheet, along with unlevered working capital provides the ammunition to re-establish its market position and pursue large scale growth opportunities,” said William Sweedler, co-founder and managing partner at Tengram. “Despite greater global economic uncertainty today, our brands are core to our customers and thus well-positioned to build momentum as we invest in product development and marketing, re-establishing High Ridge Brands as a leader in the consumer space.”

Tengram invests in companies in the branded consumer products and retail sectors. The firm was founded in 2010 and has offices in Westport, Connecticut and New York City.

New York City and London-based CD&R invests in European and US-based businesses. Since founding in 1978, the firm has invested $28 billion in 86 companies across a range of industries including numerous consumer health and medical device businesses.

© 2020 Private Equity Professional | April 7, 2020

Marquee Brands Adds to Portfolio

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Marquee Brands has agreed to acquire the Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse brands from publicly-traded Sequential Brands Group.

Marquee Brands was formed by Neuberger Berman in 2014 to acquire, license and manage a portfolio of consumer brands. The company and Neuberger Berman closed a dedicated investment fund, Marquee Brands Partners LP, in February 2016 with $462 million of committed capital.

The Martha Stewart brand is a media and merchandising platform founded by Martha Stewart, a media personality, author, and lifestyle icon. Ms. Stewart will join the Marquee Brands team and continue to guide the brand she founded. The Emeril Lagasse cooking brand was founded in 1990 by Emeril Lagasse, an award-winning chef, restauranteur, and media personality.

Marquee’s investment team is led by Samuel Porat and Zachary Sigel, both are managing directors at Neuberger Berman. The operating arm of Marquee is led by Michael DeVirgilio, president, and Cory Baker, chief operating officer. Both teams are based in New York (www.marqueebrands.com).

“This transformative acquisition allows Marquee Brands to enter the home, food, and media sectors,” said Mr. Sigel. “The addition of new partners, customers, and capabilities will further diversify Marquee Brands, improving its position as a preeminent global brand owner.”

With the buy of the Martha Stewart and the Emeril Lagasse brands, Marquee Brands will form a new Home and Food division which joins its existing Women’s Fashion, Men’s Fashion and Active/Outdoor divisions. The new division will be led by Carolyn D’Angelo, the president of Sequential Brands’ home division.

Marquee currently owns women’s fashion brands BCBGMAXAZRIA and BCBGENERATION (acquired in 2017); British inspired men’s clothing brand Ben Sherman (acquired in 2015); outdoor sports brand Body Glove (acquired in 2016); luxury Italian footwear brand Bruno Magli (acquired in 2015); and outdoor sports and lifestyle brand Dakine (acquired in 2018).

“Martha Stewart is a visionary whose educational mission and innovative approach has inspired millions of people to live more meaningfully. Martha Stewart branded products, known for their high quality, superior function and beautiful design, have enriched homes around the world,” said Mr. Porat.

Neuberger Berman, founded in 1939, is a private, independent, employee-owned investment manager. The firm manages equities, fixed income, private equity and hedge fund portfolios for institutions and advisors worldwide with $323 billion in client assets as of March 31, 2019. The firm has offices in 23 countries and is headquartered in New York (www.nb.com).

The buys of the Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse brands are expected to close in the second quarter of 2019.

© 2019 Private Equity Professional | April 17, 2019

Yellow Wood Sells PDC to CVC

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Yellow Wood Partners has sold its portfolio company PDC Brands, a collection of beauty, personal care, and wellness brands, for just over $1.4 billion to CVC Capital Partners.

PDC Brands maintains a portfolio of many category-leading brands across the wellness, haircare, beauty & cosmetics, fragrance, bath & body, and salon professional markets. Company owned brand names include, among others, Dr. Teal’s (wellness and bath & body); Cantu (haircare); Eylure and Elegant Touch (beauty & cosmetics); Body Fantasies and Bod Man (fragrance); Bodycology, Calgon, and The Healing Garden (bath & body); and Salon System (salon professional). The company’s products are sold through major retailers in the US, UK and in 60 additional markets globally.

PDC Brands was formerly known as Parfums de Coeur, Ltd. – which was founded in 1981 – and changed its name to PDC Brands in March 2015. Today, PDC is headquartered in Stamford, CT with an additional office near London in Hayes, UK (www.pdcbeauty.com).

Yellow Wood acquired PDC Brands in September 2012. “Over the past five years of our partnership with PDC, the company has successfully grown into a multinational consumer products company providing unique and innovative beauty and personal care products marketed to the most attractive segments of the global consumer base,” said Dana Schmaltz, Founding Partner of Yellow Wood Partners. “It has been a privilege partnering with James Stammer and the senior management team, as our combined efforts led to PDC quadrupling revenues while increasing EBITDA by more than five times under our ownership.”

The growth at PDC was created through a combination of organic growth and five add-on acquisitions: ME! Bath (May 2017), a seller of bath bombs; Original Additions (April 2016), owner of the Eylure, Elegant Touch, and Salon System brands; Cantu and Bodycology brands (June 2015), acquired from Advanced Beauty; Dr. Teal’s Therapeutic Solutions brand (February 2014), acquired from Advanced Beauty; and Calgon and The Healing Garden (January 2013), acquired from Ilex Consumer Products Group.

Yellow Wood Partners invests in consumer brands and companies with revenues between $30 million and $200 million. Sectors of interest include branded consumer products across a variety of channels including mass, drug, food, specialty, club and e-commerce. The firm was founded in 2011 and is based in Boston (www.yellowwoodpartners.com).

CVC Capital Partners, the buyer of PDC, currently manages over $65 billion of capital, and funds managed or advised by CVC are invested in 50 companies worldwide. The firm, founded in 1981, is based in London and has a network of 20 offices and 420 employees throughout Europe, Asia and the United States (www.cvc.com).

© 2017 Private Equity Professional | July 6, 2017

Brynwood to Sell High Ridge to CD&R

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Brynwood Partners has signed an agreement to sell High Ridge Brands to Clayton, Dubilier & Rice for $415 million.  This sale is the largest realization in Brynwood’s 32-year history. The transaction is expected to close before the end of June.

High Ridge Brands was formed by Brynwood Partners in December 2010 to purchase the North American Zest personal cleansing brand from Procter & Gamble and to serve as a platform for further acquisitions in the personal care consumer segment. Completed add-on acquisitions include:

  • The US and Puerto Rican brand and marketing rights to the Alberto VO5 brand and the worldwide marketing and brand rights to the Rave brand from Unilever (August 2011)
  • Global rights to the Coast personal cleansing brand from Henkel (March 2012)
  • Global rights to the White Rain brand from Sun Products (June 2012)
  • Global rights to the brands of La Bella, L.A. Looks, Soft & Dri, Dep, Thicker Fuller Hair, Zero Frizz, Pure & Natural, Adorn, Mink and The Dry Look from Newhall Laboratories (May 2015)
  • Continental Fragrances, the owner of the Salon Grafix hair styling brand (October 2015)

High Ridge has approximately 45 employees and outsources all of its manufacturing. The company is led by James Daniels, President and CEO, and is headquartered in Stamford, CT (www.highridgebrands.com).

“The High Ridge Brands platform highlights Brynwood’s unique capabilities in the corporate carve out sector, having built the company through a series of acquisitions from some of the leading global consumer products companies,” said Henk Hartong III, President and CEO of Brynwood Partners.

Brynwood Partners is an operationally-focused private equity firm that makes control investments in consumer focused lower middle-market companies. The firm has $725 million of capital under management. Brynwood Partners was founded in 1984 and is based in Greenwich, CT (www.brynwoodpartners.com).

CD&R invests in European and US-based businesses.  Since founding in 1978, the firm has invested $21 billion in 66 companies across a range of industries with an aggregate transaction value of approximately $100 billion. CD&R is based in New York and London (www.cdr-inc.com).

William Blair & Company (www.williamblair.com) was the company’s investment banking advisor. Holland & Knight (www.hklaw.com) acted as legal advisor.  Debevoise & Plimpton (www.debevoise.com) was the legal advisor to CD&R and BMO Capital Markets (www.bmo.com) was its financial advisor.

© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-19-16

Lion Buys Into Leonard Green’s Authentic Brands

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Consumer-focused Lion Capital has signed an agreement to acquire a minority interest in Authentic Brands Group, a portfolio company of Leonard Green & Partners (LGP).

Authentic Brands Group (ABG) was formed by LGP in 2010 to acquire, manage and build value in prominent consumer brands and is led by Jamie Salter CEO. LGP and Mr. Salter will remain the majority owners of ABG upon completion of the Lion transaction. ABG has offices in New York, Toronto and Los Angeles (www.authenticbrandsgroup.com).

ABG’s specific areas of interest include fashion, sports and lifestyle, celebrity, media and entertainment. The company’s portfolio includes more than 23 brands such as Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, Muhammad Ali, Shaquille O’Neal, Juicy Couture, Jones New York, Hickey Freeman, Spyder and Tapout.  ABG’s brands have total annual retail sales of approximately $4.5 billion.

“After spending time with Jamie and the ABG team, I have gained a tremendous respect for the platform the ABG team has built,” said Lyndon Lea, a partner at Lion Capital. “Jamie and I saw appealing synergies between ABG and Lion Capital, and our investment represents an exciting next step for the development of ABG.”

Lion’s consumer investments include Kettle Foods, a producer of all-natural snacking products; John Varvatos, a men’s lifestyle brand; Perricone MD, an anti-aging skincare brand; Jimmy Choo, a luxury shoe and accessories retailer; and AllSaints, a contemporary fashion brand with a global store network.

Lion Capital makes investments in consumer businesses in Europe and North America. With offices in London and New York, the firm’s principals have led the investment of €6 billion of equity capital in more than 30 businesses and more than 100 consumer brands across North America and Europe. Lion Capital has offices in London and Los Angeles (www.lioncapital.com).

Leonard Green invests in middle-market companies in the retail, distribution, healthcare, aerospace/defense, and consumer/business services sectors. The firm was founded in 1989 and manages approximately $15 billion of equity capital. Leonard Green is headquartered in Los Angeles (www.leonardgreen.com).

© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-3-16