Brynwood Partners Divests Balance Bar Company
GREENWICH, CT — November 26, 2012 — Brynwood Partners VI L.P. announced today that it has sold its portfolio company, Balance Bar Company, to NBTY, Inc., a global leader in vitamins, supplements and active nutrition products and a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group.
Balance Bar, founded in 1992, and acquired by Brynwood VI from Kraft Foods, Inc. in 2009, has been an innovator in the nutrition/energy bar category. The company, which is headquartered in Valhalla, NY, is one of the leading brands in the high growth $1 billion nutrition/energy bar category. Balance Bar enjoys a strong and loyal consumer following and has some of the most recognized bars in the industry. Balance Bar products offer a unique combination of great taste and lasting energy through balanced nutrition.
“We are delighted to announce the divestiture of Balance Bar, which was our first investment in our most recent fund, Brynwood VI,” said Hendrik J. Hartong III, Chairman, Balance Bar and Senior Managing Partner, Brynwood Partners. “We are grateful to all of the Balance Bar employees for their hard work and dedication to the business. We wish NBTY continued success with this great brand.”
“On behalf of Brynwood Partners, I would like to thank the Carlyle and NBTY teams for their efforts in completing this transaction. We have enjoyed the relationship,” said Ian B. MacTaggart, Managing Partner, Brynwood Partners.
Houlihan Lokey Capital, Inc. served as the investment banking advisor to Balance Bar.
About Brynwood
Partners:
Founded in 1984 and
headquartered in Greenwich, CT, Brynwood Partners is an operationally-focused
private equity fund that makes control investments in lower middle market
companies. Brynwood Partners targets companies operating in the following
sectors: (a) consumer products, (b) light manufacturing with low capital
intensity and (c) business services.
Brynwood Partners is currently managing over $500 million of private equity capital for its limited partners who include U.S. and international pension funds, fund-of-funds, endowments, high net worth family investment offices and financial institutions. For more information on Brynwood Partners, please visit www.brynwoodpartners.com.
About Balance Bar Company:
Founded in 1992 and headquartered
in Valhalla, NY, Balance Bar, one of America’s original nutrition/energy bars,
inspires consumers to lead active, well-rounded and balanced lives by providing
great-tasting, healthy and convenient nutrition for lasting energy. Balance
Bars are available in four unique product lines (Original, Gold, Bare and
Minis) and all the Company’s flavors are based on the 40/30/30 nutrition model
(40% of calories from healthy carbohydrates, 30% from quality protein and 30%
from dietary fat). For more information on Balance Bar, please visit www.balance.com.
About NBTY, Inc.:
NBTY, Inc. is the leading
vertically integrated manufacturer, marketer, distributor and retailer of
high-quality vitamins, nutritional supplements and related products in the
United States, with operations worldwide. NBTY currently markets over 25,000
SKUs under many brands, including Nature’s Bounty®, Sundown®, American
Health®,Ester-C®, Solgar®, MET-Rx®, Osteo Bi-Flex®, SISU®, Rexall®, Pure
Protein®, Body Fortress®, Puritan’s Pride®, Vitamin World®, Holland &
Barrett®, GNC (UK)®, Physiologics®, and De Tuinen®.
About The Carlyle Group:
The Carlyle Group is a global
alternative asset manager with $157 billion of assets under management in 101
active funds and 64 fund of fund vehicles as of September 30, 2012. Carlyle
invests across four segments, Corporate Private Equity, Real Assets, Global
Market Strategies and Fund of Funds Solutions – in Africa, Asia, Australia,
Europe, the Middle East, North America and South America. Carlyle has developed
expertise in various industries, including: aerospace, defense & government
services, consumer & retail, energy, financial services, healthcare,
industrial, technology & business services, telecommunications & media
and transportation. The Carlyle Group employs more than 1,300 people in 32
offices across six continents.
Location:
Brynwood Partners
Eight Sound Shore Dr., Suite 265
Greenwich, CT 06830
Tel: 203-622-1790