Charlesbank Capital Partners announced today that it has acquired BOX Partners (“BOX” or the “Company”), a leading technology-enabled supplier of packaging, shipping, industrial supplies and related products for the e-commerce and distribution markets. Family-owned since its 1989 inception, the Company has grown to one of the country’s largest wholesalers of packaging products. Headquartered in Elgin, Illinois, the Company has approximately 400 employees. The transaction, which was funded with both equity and debt, introduces the first outside equity for the company.
BOX competes in the $70 billion packaging and shipping supplies end-market. The Company partners with distributors, offering them broad product selection, distribution expertise and marketing tools to compete with even the largest competitors in the industry. The Company is distinguished by its ability to aggregate and efficiently fulfill millions of orders on behalf of its distributor partners, providing access to over 1,000,000 square feet of virtual warehouse space with over 20,000 items. BOX operates nationwide out of its warehouse in Illinois.
In conjunction with the transaction, BOX’s Co-founder and President will step down, and Neil Thomas will become the new CEO. Mr. Thomas is well-known to Charlesbank from his prior role as CEO of Trojan Battery, a family-founded business that Charlesbank owned from 2013-2018. Other members of the current leadership team will remain in their current roles.
Mr. Thomas said, “I’m very pleased to join BOX at this exciting time. The Company is well-positioned to expand in new product categories and geographies and to optimize and broaden its use of e-commerce platforms. I look forward to leveraging my experience to help this talented management team continue to excel and strengthen its industry presence.”
Added Brandon White, Charlesbank Managing Director, “BOX is a well-respected brand in the packaging industry with a strong competitive position and a firm commitment to excellent quality and service. We are excited to partner again with Neil, who brings strong leadership skills and an impressive track record in building value across multiple brands and businesses.”
Mesirow served as financial advisor to BOX Partners on the transaction.
About Charlesbank Capital Partners
Based in Boston and New York, Charlesbank Capital Partners is a middle-market private investment firm with more than $15 billion of capital raised since inception. Charlesbank focuses on management-led buyouts and growth capital financings, and also engages in opportunistic credit and technology investments. The firm seeks to build companies with sustainable competitive advantage and excellent prospects for growth. For more information, please visit www.charlesbank.com.