Private equity firm Brynwood Partners has agreed to sell its portfolio company, Harvest Hill Beverage Company — the maker of SunnyD and Juicy Juice — to Guatemalan conglomerate Castillo Hermanos in a deal valued at approximately $1.5bn, including debt, according to a report by Reuters.
The report cites unnamed people familiar with the matter, as highlighting that the deal marks a major cross-border exit for Brynwood, a Connecticut-based firm specialising in lower middle market consumer investments. The transaction also represents a significant step for Castillo Hermanos in expanding its footprint beyond Central America and into the US market.
Founded by Brynwood in 2014 with the carve-out of Juicy Juice from Nestlé USA, Harvest Hill has grown into a leading North American beverage platform under private equity ownership. Over the last decade, Brynwood executed a buy-and-build strategy, adding eight brands to the platform including Daily’s Cocktails, Nutrament, Little Hug, and SunnyD, which it acquired from Suntory in 2017.
With operations headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, Harvest Hill operates multiple manufacturing facilities across the US, giving Castillo Hermanos an immediate domestic production and distribution footprint. That infrastructure is expected to help the family-owned conglomerate mitigate tariff exposure and accelerate the US rollout of its own products, including beverages under the Famosa brand.
Castillo Hermanos, one of Central America’s oldest and most prominent industrial groups, will be the majority owner, while US-based Centerview Capital is joining as a minority partner. Centerview was founded by Jim Kilts, a former CEO of Gillette and a long-time operator and investor in the consumer goods sector.
Citi served as sole financial advisor to the buyer group and led the deal’s financing.
Brynwood Partners, headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, currently manages over $1bn in committed capital.
