DALLAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Kainos Capital LP, a private equity firm focused on the food and consumer products and services sectors, today announced the successful closing of Kainos Capital Partners III LP with over $1 billion in capital commitments, the largest investment vehicle in Kainos’ history. Existing Kainos investors provided a significant amount of Fund III’s capital and referred many new investors to the Fund.
Kainos seeks to build strategically relevant food and consumer companies by implementing Change Capital initiatives, and leveraging its industry experience and relationships to help partner businesses capitalize on their growth opportunities and improve profitability. Many of the partners at Kainos have been investing in the food and consumer industry for over 20 years and several were senior leaders in the industry prior to joining Kainos.
The dedicated Kainos Operations Team works with portfolio companies to help drive manufacturing process improvement, supply chain and purchasing savings, financial organization and analysis, information technology enhancements, and talent recruitment and retention. Additionally, the Kainos team owns a controlling ownership stake in MEMCO Engineering Solutions, a company that designs and implements customized, automated food and beverage manufacturing production systems, and works extensively with the Firm’s portfolio companies.
Consistent with Kainos’ approach over the past decade, Fund III primarily will target family-owned businesses and corporate carve-outs in the food and consumer products sectors with at least $10 million in EBITDA. Kainos has found that these sellers – several of whom are investors in Fund III – frequently value Kainos’ sector experience and operating capabilities, often retaining ownership stakes in the businesses Kainos acquires. Fund III can commit in excess of $300 million of equity, and potentially more with our Limited Partner co-investment program, in any single transaction.
Andrew Rosen, Managing Partner of Kainos, said, “Our bench of seasoned investors and operators within the food and consumer sectors helps drive financial and operational performance by working hand-in-glove with management teams. We believe Kainos’ sector experience, industry relationships, and robust operating capabilities make us an attractive partner to families and entrepreneurs who are excited about their business’ prospects yet seek to diversify their wealth. We are grateful for the strong support we received from our investors, whose continued partnership is a testament to the strength of our team and our Change Capital investment approach.”
To date, Fund III is approximately one-third invested across three platform acquisitions: CellCore Biosciences, a wellness company that provides dietary supplements that are primarily sold through the practitioner channel; Specialty Sales, a specialty dairy cow health distribution business; and Evriholder Products, a provider of impulse products and merchandising solutions for retailers.
Fund II’s portfolio currently includes Wellful (portfolio of health and wellness brands including Nutrisystem, Nugenix and Super Beta Prostate), Whisps (cheese snacks), Muenster (pet food), and BeautyBio (skincare products). Previously exited portfolio companies include Kettle Cuisine (soup and meal solutions), Ferraro Foods (specialty foodservice distribution), Olde Thompson (private label spices), good2grow (children’s beverages), SlimFast (weight management products), Country Fresh (fresh produce supplier), Florida Foods (specialty clean ingredients), and Trilliant (coffee products).
About Kainos Capital
Kainos Capital is a middle-market private equity firm with a focus on the food and consumer products and services sectors. The Kainos team has extensive investment and operating experience in the industry, having invested approximately $3 billion of equity in more than 40 transactions with a total transaction value of over $6 billion. The firm’s strategy is to build a diversified portfolio of growing and strategically relevant food and consumer businesses. Additional information about Kainos Capital is available at www.kainoscapital.com.
