Rosewood Private Investments buys nutrition contract manufacturer ProTec Laboratory

Rosewood Private Investments, private equity arm of philanthropist and former hotelier Caroline Hunt’s estate, purchased ProTec Laboratory, an East Texas contract manufacturer of dietary supplements, sports nutrition, and pet care products, for an undisclosed sum.

This marks the third Texas-based contract manufacturer that Rosewood’s holding company, International Nutrition & Wellness Holdings, has scooped up this year, The Dallas Morning news reported.

In July, the holdings company purchased contract manufacturer Healthy Natural from Rice-Bran Technologies. Prior to that, it purchased an ownership stake in United 1 International Laboratories, another contract manufacturer for dietary supplements, sports nutrition, and personal care products based in Texas.

“With Rosewood’s support we have been able to invest heavily in this category, beginning with United 1,” said Paul Richardson, CEO of International Nutrition & Wellness Holdings.

“The recent integration of Healthy Natural has created meaningful value for us and more importantly, for our customers. By bringing ProTec into the fold, we’ve created a significant platform of scale with enormous potential.”

According to Richardson, the combined businesses serve over 100 customers in over 60 markets globally. “We plan to grow far beyond that by focusing on our centers of excellence as well as through select strategic acquisitions,” he added.

Sarah and Sail Ricks, founders of ProTec, said, “This investment will enable a 100,000-square foot expansion and allow us to make significant enhancements through technology and greater automation. Partnering with Rosewood and INW gives us the ability to rapidly expand our product portfolio and better serve our customers.”

ProTec was advised by Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, P.C., and Alantra Partners, S.A. served as the company’s sell-side advisor.

Rosewood companies received legal representation from Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP. 

Correction: An earlier version of this article referred to Rosewood Private Investments as the private equity arm of luxury hotelier Rosewood. The business no longer owns the hotel chain. (Updated 11/21/2017)