Mason Wells Newsletter 2015 – Volume 1

• Mason Wells Announces the Sale of Paris Presents Incorporated
• Pacon Corporation Acquires Roselle Paper Company
• Mason Wells Promotions

Mason Wells closed the sale of Paris Presents Incorporated on December 31, 2014, to Wasser-stein & Co., LP. Wasserstein is a mid-market private equity firm, based in New York and Los Angeles. Paris Presents, headquartered in Gurnee, Illinois, is the leading provider of branded personal care products including cosmetic and bath accessories to domestic and international mass merchants, national and independent drug stores, specialty beauty stores, grocery stores, and e-commerce retailers. The Company’s products are sold throughout the U.S. and in over 20 international markets.

“This sale concludes a highly successful partnership with the outstanding management team at Paris Presents, led by CEO Patrick O’Brien,” said Kevin Kenealey, Senior Managing Director at Mason Wells. “Under our ownership, Paris Presents has emerged as one of the fastest growing branded personal care companies. The management team established the Company as a leader in its categories through world-class product innovation, consumer insights, leading-edge marketing strategies, and operational excellence. The momentum behind the Company’s flagship brands, Real Techniques, Eco-Tools, and Body Benefits, has the business poised for continued exceptional growth both domestically and internationally under the new ownership of Wasserstein.”

Patrick O’Brien, CEO of Paris, said “The teamwork and chemistry between my management team and Mason Wells were extraordinary. The support of Mason Wells on all levels helped us to further establish Paris Presents as a best-in-class company in its categories. We are very excited to continue to grow and expand the business under the ownership of Wasser-stein. We look forward to continuing to provide consumers with innovative products and executing on the robust growth opportunities in front of us.”

In October 2014, Pacon Corporation, a Mason Wells portfolio company and a leading global supplier of education, art, and craft products, announced the acquisition of Roselle Paper Co. Inc. Founded in 1964, Roselle is a producer of school, office, and art products. The Company serves the education, art, and office markets through retailers, school distributors, and wholesalers.

With the addition of Roselle, Pacon now offers customers a complete line of products, strengthening its ability to be a single source of supply for education and art products. Coupled with Pacon’s advanced manufacturing and system technologies, customers can be confident in the Company’s ability to deliver the best overall value, products of the highest quality, and outstanding customer service.

“Mason Wells is pleased to re-invest alongside the management team to support Pacon’s growth initiatives,” said Tom Smith, Executive Managing Director of Mason Wells. He added, “The acquisition of Roselle’s assets achieves many of Pacon’s strategic initiatives, including diversification of its customer base and broadening its product offerings.”

Roselle’s assets and operations will be consolidated with Pacon’s facilities in Appleton, Wisconsin, and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Mason Wells is proud of the work and effort of all of our employees. Three individuals were recently promoted to Managing Director, and another individual was promoted to Associate in recognition of their exceptional dedication and passion to Mason Wells and private equity. They bring a level of performance that is commendable, and we are pleased to announce the following promotions:

Ben Holbrook was promoted to Managing Director. Since joining Mason Wells in 2005, Mr. Holbrook has spent the majority of his time working on investments in the Consumer Packaged Goods sector. His efforts were integral to the growth of Paris Presents, where he served on the Board of Directors and worked with the Company to guide it to a successful exit as noted above. Mr. Holbrook also serves on the Board of Directors of Whitehall Specialties, Inc., Eddy Packing Co., Inc., and A&R Logistics, Inc. Mr. Holbrook received a Bachelor of Science Degree with Honors in Psychology from Brown University and completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in 2013.

Asim Khan was promoted to Managing Director. Mr. Khan joined Mason Wells in 2003 and has been integral in working with portfolio companies in both the Engineered Products & Services and Outsourced Business Services sectors. Mr. Khan led the firm’s 2013 investment in Aquion, Inc., a manufacturer of water treatment systems. He serves on the Board of Directors of Aquion, as well as Dedicated Computing LLC, Paragon Development Systems, Inc., and The Oilgear Company. Mr. Khan received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting and Finance from Marquette University.

Jay Radtke was also promoted to Managing Director. Since joining Mason Wells in 2006, Mr. Radtke has played a vital role in driving value creation in portfolio companies in the Packaging Materials & Converting sector. Mr. Radtke led the 2013 investment in Nelipak Healthcare Packaging, a manufacturer of thermoformed packaging for the global healthcare industry. In addition to the Nelipak Board of Directors, Mr. Radtke is also a member of the Board of Directors of Charter NEX Films, Inc., Coating Excellence International LLC, and Mullinix Packages, Inc. Mr. Radtke received a Master of Business Administration Degree from Columbia Business School and a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Vanderbilt University.

Damon Thome was promoted to Associate. Mr. Thome previously held positions as Senior Analyst and Analyst at Mason Wells after joining the firm in 2012. Mr. Thome is primarily responsible for supporting the partners’ investment activities by providing due diligence support, in-depth investment analysis, financial modeling, market research, and monitoring of portfolio companies. Prior to joining Mason Wells, Mr. Thome was an Investment Banking Analyst in Piper Jaffray’s Industrial Group in its Minneapolis office. Mr. Thome received a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree with Top Honors in Finance and Accounting from the University of Wisconsin.