'Honey Bear' Blow Molder Picked Up by Private Equity Firm

Posted by Staff | Feb 23, 2023

Chicago-based private equity firm Shore Capital Partners has finalized a partnership with Container Services Inc. (CSI), a custom blow molder of rigid plastic containers based in Hillsboro, KS, with a second location in New Castle, PA.

Founded by Darrell Driggers in 1991 to provide custom plastic bottles to honey producers, CSI is known for the iconic "honey bear" bottle. The company expanded its product offerings and manufacturing capabilities over the years, growing into a manufacturer of custom containers for customers in the food and beverage, household products, and automotive industries, said Shore Capital in the announcement. CSI specializes in the production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) blow-molded plastic containers and has expertise working with post-consumer recycled plastic resins.

CSI has over 100 employees, and more than 150,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space, Darrell Driggers’ son, Brent Driggers, joined the company in 2015 and currently serves as CEO. He will continue in his role as CEO of CSI, said Shore Capital.

"Our partnership with Shore Capital will enable us to invest further in our team and continue improving our production capabilities. Most importantly, this partnership with Shore ultimately enables us to better serve our customers," said Brent Driggers in a prepared statement.

Shore said it plans to build on CSI's strong team and high-quality manufacturing capabilities by investing in the business development, sales and marketing, and operational infrastructure of the company to help drive transformational growth. Upon closing the partnership, Katie Bush and Ryan Drews joined CSI's management team as Chief of Staff and VP of Strategic Initiatives, respectively, as part of Shore Capital's CXO Executive Program. Together, CSI and Shore will explore opportunities for inorganic growth through acquisitions of rigid plastic container manufacturers and organic growth through continued best-in-class customer service, new customer partnerships, and expanded offerings to existing customers.

Shore Capital Partners is focused on microcap investments within the healthcare, food and beverage, business services, and real estate industries. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) defines microcap companies as those having a market capitalization of less than $300 million. Shore targets investments in successful private companies within this cohort that have "superior management teams, stable cash flow, and significant growth potential, including organic growth and growth through industry consolidation." It has approximately $3 billion of cumulative capital commitments.

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