Impact Capital – the Private Equity group of Mike Repole’s family office – recently announced it had acquired a majority stake in JUNKLESS Foods. Repole – a serial entrepreneur with a track record of building and selling profitable businesses and his team – will partner with JUNKLESS founders Ernie Pang and Larry Beyer to help the better-for-you chewy granola bar become the go-to choice in the category. The entire team shares a vision to build JUNKLESS’ brand into the next billion-dollar healthy snack platform.
Repole is no stranger to the snack food business. In between co-founding vitaminwater and BODYARMOR – which sold to The Coca-Cola Company for $4 billion and $8 billion respectively, he bought a majority stake in Pirate’s Booty. Over a four-year period, Repole and his team made Pirate’s Booty a household name through rebranding, a strategic sales strategy, partnerships, and innovation, quadrupling sales, and selling the company to B&G Foods. Repole was also a major early investor and board member in KIND, prior to its sale to Mars in 2020.
JUNKLESS products (started by Ernie Pang and Larry Beyer) are made with clean and simple ingredients and never with anything artificial. They are a healthier alternative to the sugar-loaded, over-processed snacks and bars currently on the market.
In JUNKLESS, the Impact team saw tremendous potential for the better-for-you bars to become a leading national brand with room for growth through innovation and distribution.
KEY QUOTES:
“We have poured our heart and soul into getting JUNKLESS to where it is today, but we knew we needed something more to take us to the next level. We could not have asked for better partners in Mike and the Impact Team, who share our passion for JUNKLESS and see the incredible potential of our brand, and know how to get us there.”
- Ernie Pang, Co-Founder of JUNKLESS
“We saw a huge opportunity for JUNKLESS to become a major brand. Everyone is looking for better-for-you versions of their favorite snacks – and that’s exactly what JUNKLESS provides. The passion of Ernie, Larry, and the entire JUNKLESS team, combined with our experience growing small brands into scalable mainstream brands, is a perfect match.”
- Mike Repole
