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| JEFFREY F. TARPLIN,
CEO and Managing Director. Jeff provides strategic and financial advice
to build value for growing companies in the food industry. During the
last several years he has represented leading institutional investors
and food companies in connection with acquisitions in a broad range of
product segments including bakery products, food ingredients, frozen
vegetable processing, appetizers and hand held foods, cookies, artisan
breads, healthy snacks, refrigerated products, non-alcoholic beverages,
confectionery and specialty food import and distribution.
After practicing mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance law in New York for 10 years, Jeff worked in the private equity/ buyout business as part of a fund management firm. He also acquired a middle market packaging and distribution company in a leveraged buyout and, with partners, managed this company for several years. Previously he was a principal of Quadrant Management (New York, NY), an investment fund affiliated with Richemont - the Swiss based financial holding company that controls luxury brands such as Cartier, Mont Blanc, Dunhill and Piaget. At Quadrant, Jeff managed investments and acquisitions in wholesale distribution, food, business services, oil and gas, and manufacturing companies, and arranged debt and equity financing for portfolio companies. Earlier in his career, Jeff practiced corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions law on Wall Street and with major law firms in New York and Washington, D.C., including Carter, Ledyard & Milburn, Brobeck Hale and Dorr International and Baker & Hostetler. During this period he handled several hundred transactions, advising LBO and private equity funds, investment banks, commercial banks and corporate clients in connection with mergers and acquisitions, public offerings, venture capital and commercial financing transactions. Jeff received a JD from The National Law Center at George Washington University and a B.A., with honors, from Haverford College. FRED ANDERSON, Managing Director-Director of Financial Analytics. Fred provides strategic and financial advice to build value for growing companies in the food industry. Since 1999, Fred has been affiliated with India Brook Partners, LLC, a New-York based investment banking firm specializing in mergers and acquisitions in the food and beverage industry, and leads India Brook's financial analysis and transaction diligence team. Fred is a senior financial and operating executive with broad experience in M&A, turnarounds, and financial analysis and management of direct marketing and catalog operations. Prior to joining India Brook, he was a Managing Director with Gruppo, Levey and Co. (GLC), an investment banking firm specializing in the direct marketing industry, where he advised on valuation, transaction structure, raising capital, and business model viability. He also served as senior investment advisor to Direct Equity Partners, LLC, an affiliated $100 million investment fund. From 1991 to 1998 he was a Senior Vice President in charge of acquisitions for Hanover Direct, Inc. (HDI), one of the nation's largest b-to-c catalog retailers. At Hanover he successfully negotiated and closed 8 acquisitions, including Gumps, The Company Store, Tweeds, and Improvements, and participated in integrating these businesses into HDI's operations. He also served as CFO of two operating divisions of HDI. At HDI, he led a significant turnaround in the women's division, and developed the financial review discipline which allowed for rapid, profitable growth in the company's gift/home division. From 1988 to 1991 he was Chief Financial Officer of Quadrant Management, a $100 million investment fund affiliated with Richemont - the Swiss based financial holding company that controls luxury brands such as Cartier, Mont Blanc, Dunhill and Piaget. Earlier in his career Fred started and operated an independent
turnaround consultant firm specializing in troubled companies. CHRISTOPHER KOENIG,
Director. Christopher provides strategic and financial advice to
build value for companies in the food industry. He joined India
Brook in 2008 and is a member of India Brook’s investment banking
team. Most recently, Christopher was a Vice President at NewStar
Financial, Inc., a specialty finance company based in Boston, MA.
At New Star he was responsible for underwriting senior cash flow based
loans to support financial sponsor activity in the middle market.
Previously, he was a Vice President in the Global Structured Finance
& Investments group at Merrill Lynch, where he originated,
structured and executed asset based financings and principal
investments in the auto, equipment, structured settlement,
transportation and timeshare industries. Christopher received a
Bachelor of Science degree magna cum laude in Finance and Economics
from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University. KATHY HANULA, Vice President.
Kathy has been a financial advisor to lower middle market companies and
their owners for almost 20 years in the areas of financial analysis,
business valuation and mergers and acquisitions. For the past
several years she has been active in the valuation and sale of
privately owned companies. Prior to that, she was a financial
operations principal in the securities industry focusing on compliance
and reporting for privately held broker dealers. Kathy began her
career as a financial analyst in the government systems division of
IBM. She has an MBA in Finance from the University of
Pittsburgh, a BS in Finance and a BS in French from the Pennsylvania
State University. EXECUTIVE
PARTNERS Jim's industry experience in baking spans the full range of segments from seeds and growers, through milling and processing, to distribution, customers and consumers. From a channel perspective he has led efforts in foodservice, in-store bakery/deli, frozen retail and the commercial aisle. For the last several years Jim has been the CEO of Jim Green & Associates, a management consulting firm providing strategic counsel to major domestic and international food companies in connection with business development, sales, operations and acquisitions. His previous experience includes 5 years with Awrey Bakeries (Director of Marketing) and 14 years with Rich Products (Vice President - Bakery). Educated at Michigan State University, Jim continues to provide strategic counsel to leading food companies in addition to his activities with our firm. RICHARD DANKO, Executive Partner-Food. Richard provides specialized services to clients in the food industry. He has a wide range of skills and experience in finance, operations and business development in the baking industry and a range of other food industry segments. From 1975 to 1995, He was Eastern Regional Manager of the Red Star Yeast & Products Division of Universal Foods Corporation (now Sensient Technologies, Milwaukee, WI). In 1988, he was appointed Vice President of Sales and Marketing. In that capacity, he managed an organization with annual sales of over $150 million, with sales offices, factories, and distribution centers throughout North America. In addition to his position with India Brook, Richard is also President of Summit Industries International, L.L.C., a food industry consulting firm located in Sedona, Arizona. As president of Summit, Richard has developed extensive consulting contacts and experience under contract with both domestic and global clients. Mr. Danko has represented clients including bakeries, food manufacturing, and food equipment firms located in France, Germany, Belgium, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Australia, Puerto Rico, Turkey and Pakistan. Consulting engagements with these firms included: marketing strategies, sales management, market studies, as well as joint venture, mergers and acquisitions advisory services. In 1997 he joined SAF Baker's Yeast Inc., the US division of S. I. Lesaffre, the world's largest fermentation products company, headquartered in France. Originally retained as a consultant to develop the sales organization for a newly purchased factory in Alabama, his responsibilities evolved into Vice President Sales & Marketing. During a brief two year period, sales increased by 700% through Mr. Danko's efforts in business development, quality improvement and industry sales contacts. Mr. Danko was educated at the University of Pittsburgh and Syracuse University and is a member of the American Society of Baking and the Institute of Food Technologists, and is a Certified Master Baker. He was a guest lecturer at Concordia College, School of Business, at University of Wisconsin, and at the Gorman Publishing New Product Conference in 1993. He has also authored several published articles on the baking and food related industries. ADVISORY BOARD Matt Turnbull is a partner with Pelican Partners Investments, LLC which is a principal investor in small to mid-cap companies in the consumer, retail and manufacturing sectors. Previously he served as CEO of Jacques Gourmet which operates a premium bakery/café restaurant chain and manufactures and markets consumer baked goods for retail and food service distribution. Turnbull has been a consultant to private equity investors and has specialized in turnarounds and rapid growth companies. He has also served as interim president during company transitions. Turnbull has extensive operating experience as a manager and principal. In 1998 he and his partner purchased and operated Lubricating Specialties Company, a $100 million specialty chemicals manufacturer. He has also served as: Executive VP of The Custom Shop, Director of Strategic Planning at Circle K and in store operations and management for Saks Fifth Avenue and Carter Hawley Hale. Turnbull received his MBA from Harvard University and his Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from UCLA.Anna Gannon is President and CEO of Taormina Sales Company, a leading importer and distributor of specialty food products from Italy, Spain, the Mediterranean and South America, founded in 1982. She led a management team that acquired and recapitalized the Company in 2006 acquired the Company in 2006. From 1988 to 1998, she was a partner in AMR Shipping, Ltd. an international shipping company based in Italy and the USA. She managed financial and strategic planning for the business, growing revenues through transition to new global markets. She later served as Managing Partner of ARG Capital Group, where she provided finance, business planning, marketing and investment consulting services to start-up and growth companies. She holds an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School and a B.A. from Smith College. Robert P. Wessely is a Senior Partner in the New York office of Arnold & Porter, an international law firm with over 650 lawyers and offices in Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia, New York, Los Angeles, Denver, London, and Brussels. Rob specializes in mergers and acquisitions and private equity transactions, both domestically and especially across borders. He has experience representing a broad range of domestic and international corporations and financial institutions in public and private financings, mergers and acquisitions and other strategic transactions. He has recently led transactions in industries as diverse as media, steel, aviation, financial institutions and foods. Rob speaks fluent German. He was educated at the University of Illinois, the University of Vienna and the University of Michigan Law School. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and the American Society of International Law. © India Brook Partners 2004-2009. All rights reserved. |
