Rigid packaging distributor Kranson Industries Inc. of St. Louis has been purchased - again - by Code Hennessy & Simmons LLC of Chicago.
Code Hennessy & Simmons LLC invested via CHS Private Equity V LP - in partnership with Kranson's senior management - in Kranson Holdings Inc. Kranson operates under trade names TricorBraun and Caliber Wine Group.
Private equity firm AEA Investors LLC of New York had owned Kranson, acquiring it from Code Hennessy in 2004.
Kranson will continue its acquisition strategy, Strope said, but also will look to grow organically, in North America and Europe. Under AEA, Kranson acquired Fenton Weber & Jones Packaging Inc. in Buffalo, N.Y., and blow mold maker Cal-West Tool & Mold in Corona, Calif.
For its latest buyout, CHS partnered with Kranson Chairman Ken Kranzberg, Strope and other senior managers.