Updated Aug. 25, 2021, at 2:14 CDT
When you acquire two of the most famous brands in personal care, never let them see you sweat. That must have been Trive Capital’s motto when it set out to acquire Right Guard and Dry Idea.
In June, it was announced that Cincinnati-based Thriving Brands had bought the two personal care companies from Germany’s Henkel Corporation for an undisclosed amount.
Today, Dallas-based Trive Capital—a private equity firm with $3.6 billion in assets under management—revealed that it had formed Thriving Brands in partnership with industry executives Craig Cappozzo and Rolando Collado, and that Thriving Brands has completed its first acquisition with the Henkel deal.
Terms of the deal have still not been disclosed.
Henkel bought antiperspirant brands from P&G in 2006 for $420M
Henkel acquired Right Guard, Dry Idea, and Soft & Dry from Procter & Gamble in 2006 for $420 million through its U.S. subsidiary Dial.
Right Guard is a global brand leader in the men’s grooming segment, primarily through its antiperspirant and deodorant product lines. Launched in 1960, it’s been a mainstay men’s brand for generations, occasionally popping up in pop culture—as it did with its classic 1971 “Hi guy!” commercial.
Dry Idea was launched in 1978. It mostly serves the women’s antiperspirant and deodorant category in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and neighboring countries.
According to European Supermarket Magazine, Henkel sold the two brands as part of a divestment strategy, with the two antiperspirant brands viewed as “non-core activities within the Henkel Beauty Care portfolio.” Last year Henkel said it had identified brands and categories with more than $1.17 billion in total sales, marking half to be divested or discontinued by 2021.
Trive Capital pursuing a personal care platform
David Stinnett, a partner at Trive, said the big acquisitions are part of a diversified personal care investment strategy.
David Stinnett, partner at Trive Capital [Image: Trive Capital]
“From our partnership in Precise Packaging, we saw firsthand the value that can be created in the [consumer packaged goods] sector through a disciplined and data-driven approach,” Stinnett said in a statement. “We look forward to growing Right Guard and Dry Idea while pursuing strategic acquisitions to build a diversified platform of personal care brands.”
Cappozzo and Collado are ex-P&G veterans
Trive’s Thriving Brands partnership with Cappozzo and Collado brought two industry heavyweights to the deal table. Cappozzo will be the CEO and CMO at Thriving Brands; Collado will serve as COO and chief sales officer.
Trive Capital forms Thriving Brands to Acquire the Right Guard and Dry Idea Brands from Henkel
The two executives worked together at Procter & Gamble before launching their own consulting and sales businesses.
Cappozzo served in a number of leadership roles at P&G, and most recently was co-founder and managing partner of Retail Strategy Partners.
Collado also served in leadership roles at P&G before founding and leading OnCall contact sales, which was later acquired by WPP Worldwide. Collado is also co-founder and former CEO of Promoveo Health, a contract sales company.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Trive Capital and to lead the Thriving Brands company,” Cappozzo said in the statement. “Together with Trive, we have an aggressive but disciplined growth agenda for the company, focused on buying and building brands in the personal health and hygiene categories, with brands that compete predominantly in the Americas and Western Europe.”
“We have an exceptional group of seasoned functional leaders and experts who we are confident can help us build an exciting company that finds new ways to create value for our consumers, customers, and investors,” Cappozzo added.
Advisor and legal counsel
Trive’s financing advisor for the Henkel deal was Lazard Middle Market. Haynes and Boone LLP provided legal counsel.
This story was updated to show that Trive Capital has $3.6 billion in assets under management.
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