Compass Diversified

Compass Diversified is a leading private equity firm specializing in add-on acquisitions, buyouts, industry consolidation, recapitalization, late stage, and middle market investments. Focusing on niche industrial and branded consumer companies, they actively pursue investments in the manufacturing, distribution, consumer product, business services, safety and security, electronic components, and food and foodservice sectors. As the primary investor, their aim is to acquire a controlling ownership stake, ranging from $100 million to $800 million, and hold it for an average of five to seven years.

Since their founding in 2005, Compass Diversified has built a strong portfolio of over twelve companies, both in North America and abroad. Most recently, they completed the acquisition of Petmate, a leader in the premium pet products space, further expanding into the consumer products market. This acquisition is the most recent in a line of many investments following their strategy of partnering with industry leading brands. Compass Diversified is based in Westport, Connecticut, with an additional office in Costa Mesa, California.

Compass Diversified currently manages a portfolio of twelve companies, representing a wide variety of industries, products and services. Their portfolio includes Outdoor Tech, a leader in the outdoor electronics accessories space, Liberty Safe, a top-tier manufacturer and distributor of home and gun safes, 5.11, a tactical apparel and gear company founded by a group of law enforcement and armed forces personnel, and Sterno Products, a leading provider of food warming and lighting solutions for the foodservice industry.

Compass Diversified also has a history of strategic exits. In 2019, they successfully exited their stake in Accell Group, a premier designer, manufacturer, and distributor of transport-focused cycling and activity-based lifestyle products. The sale generated a 4.5x return on their original investment and marked Compass Diversified’s sixth successful exit since the beginning of 2017. As their portfolio continues to grow, their goal is to cultivate a healthy mix of returns from strategic investments and subsequent exits.