Website www.stripesgroup.com Founded 2003 Type of business Privately held company | Founder Ken Fox Headquarters New York, United States | |
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Industry Private Equity, Growth Equity Products Growth capital, Recapitalizations | ||
Stripes Group is a private equity and venture capital firm based in Manhattan, New York, founded in 2003.
Contents
Stripes Group invests primarily in:
Stripes Group focuses on acquiring well-developed start-ups, and makes $10–100 million investments in small companies. Stripes Group currently has $1.5 billion of assets under management, and 18 investments. The firm's portfolio investments include Blue Apron, Seamless and Refinery29.
History
Stripes Group was founded by Kenneth Allen “Ken” Fox, an entrepreneur and investor who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 2000, Fox was awarded as Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year.
Though Fox has started out as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs, he left his position in 1994. Since, Fox has founded various companies, including Internet Capital Group, ICG Asia, Syndero, A10 Capital, Sentinel Fund, and Stripes Group. Fox has also led investments in over 35 companies and taken two companies he started public. In 1999, Internet Capital Group, a publicly traded venture capital firm that Fox had co-founded, had a market capitalization of nearly $60 billion.
Investments
Stripes Group specializes in emerging growth, growth equity, add-on acquisitions, middle market, stand alone investments, divestitures, management buy-ins, buyouts, take-private transactions, late venture, later stage, industry consolidation, recapitalizations, and more. Stripes Group uses various "M&A" (mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures) strategies as solutions for portfolio companies that seek to increase shareholder value or reduce shareholder risk, In addition, the firm looks for relatively mature companies that are looking for capital to expand or restructure, enter new markets, or finance a significant acquisition of another company without a change of control of the business.
Stripes Group invests in companies with valuation up to $300 million and EBITDA between $2 million to $20 million, and revenue greater than $15 million or greater than 20 percent annual revenue growth. Stripes Group is also open to co-investing, with management teams being significant equity shareholders. Stripes Group seeks exit between two and four years.
In addition, Stripes Group lists its potential target investment criteria to be:
Stripes Group emphasizes entrepreneurial spirit and partnership over acquisitive relationships with the companies they invest in. Stripes Group has stated:
“We partner with entrepreneurs and operating executives in rapidly growing and profitable technology-enabled and consumer products companies with the simple goal of maximizing the appreciation of shareholder value while reducing operating risk. We make minority or majority investments in profitable companies with proven business models that are providing differentiated value to customers.”
Stripes Group’s complete list of portfolio investments and committed capital include: