North Castle Partners invests in middle-market, consumer companies with high-growth potential. And, the sale of Mineral Fusion Natural Brands stands as an example of such an investment coming to fruition.
“Our partnership with…the Mineral Fusion team is the most recent example of our vision of realizing the power of values-based partnerships and experienced operating resources to help entrepreneurs take their companies to the next stage of their development – what we call Full Potential Partnerships,” says Chip Baird, CEO and founder of the private equity firm, in a media release about the sale.
The firm is already looking to repeat this success: “we continue to look for opportunities in the beauty and personal care sector and across the Healthy, Active and Sustainable Living markets to leverage our knowledge, network and experience in building market leaders like Mineral Fusion,” Baird remarks.
The property
Denver, Colorado - based Mineral Fusion Natural Brands got its start in 2007. As its name suggests, the company makes and sells mineral makeup. Beyond that, the company sells body care and hair care products as well as a selection of brushes and makeup applications tools.
“Its products are distributed at approximately 3,000 stores, including Whole Foods, natural/specialty retail, select grocery/drug accounts, as well as online through its own e-commerce website and third-party digital retailers, and internationally, via distributors,” according to the media release North Castle Partners is circulating.
The process
Quite a lot of time and planning that went in to the Mineral Fusion – North Castle collaboration. “Our partnership with North Castle has spanned more than a decade and two North Castle portfolio companies,” Gil Pritchard, a North Castle Advisor and former CEO of Avalon Organics, tells the press.
“When we developed the idea to expand the Mineral Fusion brand, we believed that it was positioned to address the needs of consumers by delivering beauty without compromise through professional quality, naturally formulated products. North Castle supported our team through an extraordinary period of growth. We are very pleased Mineral Fusion found a home with BWX. Our companies are mission aligned and we are being encouraged to continue to pursue our passion and values,” Pritchard says in remarks reflecting his and co-founder Tim Schaeffer’s experience.
North Castle sees investing “as a means to growing small brands into leading companies,” according to Jon Canarick, the firm’s director, who goes on to say that “building on North Castle's historical experience in the category, Mineral Fusion grew from a single customer cosmetic brand into the leading natural brand of mineral-based personal care products across multiple categories, including color cosmetics, body, skin care, nail care, and hair care.”
Mineral Fusion’s next successes are in the hands of BWX, a company squarely in the personal care manufacturing sector.