Big news. We’ve formed a holding company named Charis Consumer Collaborative and raised committed capital. We are fully funded to invest in and grow tomorrow’s leading Supply Chain Native Companies.
Our mission is to build a collective of companies that make products that enrich consumers’ lives, help team members thrive, improve the planet, and compound capital.
The Collaborative is a holding company with patient committed capital that will hold several similar but non-competitive Supply Chain Native companies. We will aggressively grow each platform through both organic investments and acquisitions. We add value by leveraging our proven playbook and deep operating backgrounds and network to ignite growth and build sustainable competitive advantage that delivers step-change EBITDA growth.
Charis Consumer Collaborative is solely focused on niche family or founder-owned Supply Chain Native businesses with consumer products. Examples companies include
- Contract Manufacturers
- Branded Manufacturers
- Ingredient Manufacturers
- Packaging Manufacturers
- Critical Services to Manufacturer
We are an alternative to private equity. Our model is unique in 4 ways:
Patient Capital & Corporate Structure
First, we are not a fund. We do not have portfolio companies. We are a company. Like any company, our goal is to build value through our mission. Each company we own will be a business unit and our focus will be to steward the legacies of the founders and families with whom we’ve partnered.
Finally, being together, we can collaborate and learn from each other and enjoy leverage from common management systems, insights, talent, financial resources and networks.
We will be Co-CEOs along with a select talented crew that would not be otherwise available to these companies on a standalone basis. Our sole focus will be working alongside our business unit leaders and management teams to drive their success.
Private equity has an incentive structure that promotes rapid deployment of capital, accumulating assets under management to generate fees and short ownership periods. We don’t have this incentive structure. We may sell some companies and we may not, but we’ll never be forced to sell due to a fund mandate. We will provide liquidity to shareholders through occasional dividends and secondary markets based on the value of the enterprise we are building. As such, sellers to Charis Consumer Collaborative can know their business will be stewarded for enduring success, not flipped from one buyer to the next.
Subject Matter Expertise Derived from Operating
We are narrowly focused. All we think about is scaling Supply Chain Native Businesses. We’ve done it as operators. We’ve also built powerful networks, insights and data on consumer trends, manufacturing best practices, and customer partnerships.
As with most things in life, experience is a wonderful teacher and her lessons, though hard-earned, are a recurring gift. Our business units also have incredible subject matter expertise which we’ve learned how to amplify. Charis Consumer Colalborative is a 1+1 = 5 combination for any Supply Chain Native Business in CPG.
Playbook for Supply Chain Native Businesses
We have developed a playbook to scale lower middle market manufacturers from low single-digit EBITDA to segment-leading double-digit EBITDA powerhouses. While each company has unique strategies and challenges, a lot of things rhyme across businesses. In Supply Chain Native, the best business models focus on furthering competitive differentiation and accumulating share in core focus areas. We have tools and best practices from our current and prior experiences designed to help: (1) secure profitable volume for the long term, (2) improve competitive share position through building differential capabilities and capacity, (3) build world-class production and supply chains and (4) create an environment for people to thrive in the business.
A Greater Purpose
Another core tenant of Charis Consumer Collaborative will be driving true environmental and social purpose. High purpose companies are more than twice as likely to rank in the top two quartiles of their 10-year shareholder performance (Source: Bain & Co). Each business unit will set clear environmental and social initiatives, operationalize positive change and build rigorous tracking and reporting systems. We believe that adding authentic purpose creates iterative benefits that will make our companies premier places to work and will ultimately drive sustainable competitive advantage.
Please find more detail on our new website: www.charisconsumer.com. As you can see, we are incredibly excited to launch Charis Consumer Collaborative and thank our investors for trusting us. If you’re an owner considering your next steps, please reach out!