Bridgepoint Investment Banking has brought in Ken Wasik as managing director of its Consumer practice, the firm said on June 29. He will work from the New York office.
Wasik has spent more than 25 years on middle-market deals, and every one of them has been in consumer. His earlier jobs were at UBS, Houlihan Lokey, Jefferies and Stephens Investment Bank. Most recently he was co-head of investment banking and head of consumer investment banking at Capstone Partners.
He has built consumer groups before. According to the announcement, he set up such practices at both Houlihan Lokey and Capstone.
The deal list
The firm puts the total value of his transactions above $10 billion. Clients have included family-owned businesses, founder-led companies and companies backed by private equity.
The names on his résumé are recognisable. In beauty, he advised on the sales of Philosophy, SkinCeuticals and Physician Formula. In apparel and lifestyle, the brands were Kate Spade, Mashburn and London Fog. Bennington Marine, described as the largest independent boat maker in the U.S., and Bad Boy Mowers, billed as the fastest growing specialty lawn mower company, sit in the outdoor column.
Mahaffey Tent & Event, said to be the country’s largest tent rental company, and Pink Jeep Tours are his consumer services sales. On the e-commerce side there are Netrada, an international logistics company for brands, Build.com and Purchasing Power. He also handled the sale of the household brand Viking Range.
Public offerings are on the list too: Party City, Yoga Works, PepsiPR, Michaels Companies, ClubCorp and Intrawest Resorts.
What Bridgepoint says
Matt Plooster, the firm’s founder and CEO, was plain about why Wasik was wanted. “His ability to source and close complex transactions, paired with his deep network of consumer company owners and sponsors, makes him exactly the kind of senior banker our clients deserve,” Plooster said.
He added that the firm had been “intentional” about staffing the practice with senior people who have “genuinely differentiated track records.” Wasik’s years working for private owners, founders and family businesses, Plooster said, lines up with the clients Bridgepoint was built to serve.
Wasik, for his part, pointed to the firm’s culture and its growing national platform. “The firm has built real credibility in the middle market, and I see a significant opportunity to deepen the Consumer practice,” he said, adding that he plans to bring his relationships and transaction experience with him. “I’m excited to get to work.”
In New York, he joins a consumer team that is already up and running. His brief is to widen origination and client coverage alongside it.
Bridgepoint describes itself as a boutique bank advising on M&A and capital raising, with clients in industrials, transportation, consumer and retail, healthcare, business and IT services, and technology. Its principals have completed more than 411 transactions worth over $358 billion in capital, according to the firm.
Sources
- Bridgepoint Investment Banking Welcomes Ken Wasik as Managing Director, Deepening Consumer Practice and New York Presence
- Bridgepoint Investment Banking Adds Ken Wasik to Expand Consumer M&A Practice
