We help build
powerful brands
that make
beloved productsTM
Definition
adverb
Onward so as to make progress;
toward a successful conclusion.
toward a successful conclusion.
About us
Forward Consumer Partners was founded in 2023. We created Forward to help build enduring consumer businesses, providing each portfolio company with the partnership, resources, experience, and ambition to make progress toward its potential.
Our Strategy
Our mission is to help build brands that matter, in partnership with inspiring leaders, and to create meaningful equity value as a result.
Forward’s approach is based on the observation that lower-middle market consumer brands can benefit significantly from the resources and capabilities which are often only available to larger companies. The Forward team draws upon a diverse set of experiences across investing, advising, and operating roles, and our repeatable value creation strategy has helped move numerous consumer brands forward.
Our philosophy is built on the simple principle of leaving things better than we found them. We strive to bring passion, commitment, respect, and integrity to each of our partnerships. Our approach is grounded in focus, leading to a more concentrated portfolio where we can bring resources and positive momentum to help drive results.
Forward’s approach is based on the observation that lower-middle market consumer brands can benefit significantly from the resources and capabilities which are often only available to larger companies. The Forward team draws upon a diverse set of experiences across investing, advising, and operating roles, and our repeatable value creation strategy has helped move numerous consumer brands forward.
Our philosophy is built on the simple principle of leaving things better than we found them. We strive to bring passion, commitment, respect, and integrity to each of our partnerships. Our approach is grounded in focus, leading to a more concentrated portfolio where we can bring resources and positive momentum to help drive results.
Investment Criteria
We invest behind growing and well-positioned consumer brands with a proven track record of success over time. Our flexible mandate allows us to invest in companies ranging from $25-250+ million in revenue. At Forward, we look for the following attributes:
Stable and advantaged sub-sectors
Inspiring and collaborative leaders
Sustained performance over time
Strong brand loyalty and product affinity
Proven profit formula
Target Sectors
At Forward, we target sectors where deep consumer loyalty, strong brand/product differentiation, and repeat purchase behavior can generate enduring brand value. While we evaluate a broad range of investment opportunities, we prioritize the following sectors:
Food and Beverage
Personal Care
Consumer Health
Beverage Alcohol
Household Products
Pet
Apparel and Accessories
Enthusiast Products
Fast forward
Fast Forward is a distinct strategy within Forward. It represents a small but meaningful proportion of our capital base, and our investment approach leverages similar category-, brand-, and business-level insights as a traditional Forward investment.
Similar to Forward’s core strategy, we strive to provide each Fast Forward brand with the partnership, resources, experience, and ambition to make progress toward its potential.
Fast Forward deals are characterized by one or more unique advantages that we see in an investment. This could entail bringing a brand from one class of trade to another (i.e. helping build a product-focused company around an existing restaurant brand), partnering with a proven entrepreneur on his or her next venture, or other distinctive strategies that will help a brand scale with greater speed and a higher probability of success.
Similar to Forward’s core strategy, we strive to provide each Fast Forward brand with the partnership, resources, experience, and ambition to make progress toward its potential.
Fast Forward deals are characterized by one or more unique advantages that we see in an investment. This could entail bringing a brand from one class of trade to another (i.e. helping build a product-focused company around an existing restaurant brand), partnering with a proven entrepreneur on his or her next venture, or other distinctive strategies that will help a brand scale with greater speed and a higher probability of success.
Our Advisors
Tim Barakett
Joel Clark
Olivier Durand
Greg Eisner
Shu Hung
Miguel Leal
Maura Mottolese
Stephen Schwannhausser
Dr. Valerie Oswalt
Pat Tenore
Jody Williams