Houston-based food and nutrition company Iwi secured growth financing from local investment firm GP Capital Partners.
The $8 million investment made by GP Capital Partners included $5.5 million in debt and $2.5 million in direct equity, the groups announced Jan. 18.
Iwi is a producer of plant-based omega-3 and protein nutrition products sold to retailers and directly to consumers. The firm builds algae farms the size of football fields in the deserts of West Texas and southern New Mexico. Using proceeds from the investment, Iwi plans to scale product development and marketing, as well as expand into new international markets.
"The iwi team looks forward to working with GP Capital Partners following their investment in our growing company," said Iwi CEO Miguel Calatayud. "We have big plans for accelerating our growth and are pleased to partner with this team that brings both expertise and relationships to support us in this new stage of the company."
GP Capital Partners provides debt and equity financing to fund growth and recapitalizations for companies in the lower middle market. The $275 million fund, which announced launching in October 2021, is organized as a Small Business Investment Company, or SBIC, which gives GP Capital Partners access to government-backed capital to invest into small businesses.
The financing for Iwi was GP Capital Partners' first strategic growth investment since launching last year.
GP Capital Partners was founded by Paul Hobby and Peter Shaper, founding partners of Houston-based private equity firm Genesis Park, as well as managing partners Gina Luna and Curtis Hartman.
"We are excited about our investment in Iwi. They have a proprietary and scalable process to create in-demand products in a sustainable manner," said Luna. "We look forward to working with Iwi's management team as they pursue this transformative opportunity."
Luna previously spent over two decades with JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) in Houston, most recently serving as Houston market chairman and managing director of Chase commercial banking. She was also founding chairman for startup-focused nonprofit Houston Exponential.
When launching last year, GP Capital Partners said it planned to make investments into a diverse range of industries, including communications, information technology, advanced manufacturing and other tech-enabled businesses. The fund plans to make 20 to 25 investments ranging between $5 million and $20 million over its life cycle.
