Key Takeaways
- • Insignia Capital Group completed the sale of Tillamook Country Smoker to Second Nature Brands (owned by CapVest Partners), marking a nine-year hold that generated more than 3x revenue and EBITDA growth, transforming the company from a Pacific Northwest regional brand into a nationwide meat-snack producer.
- • Tillamook Country Smoker operates two Oregon manufacturing facilities and distributes across all major retail channels (grocery, club, mass, convenience, e-commerce), with a product portfolio centered on beef jerky, meat sticks, smoked sausages, and a Zero Sugar line targeting health-conscious consumers.
- • The U.S. meat-snack category represents approximately $20.5 billion in 2025 revenue with projected annual growth of 6.9% through the mid-2030s, driven by consumer demand for high-protein, portable, clean-label, and zero-sugar products; jerky accounts for roughly 42% of category sales.
- • Second Nature Brands, now bolstered by Tillamook Country Smoker, operates a diversified snacking portfolio including Kar's Nuts, Sahale Snacks, Sanders, Brownie Brittle, and Voortman, with 380 employees and two Michigan manufacturing facilities; the acquisition strengthens its position in a fragmented, category-anchoring market.
- • Houlihan Lokey advised Insignia Capital and Tillamook Country Smoker on the exit; Solomon Partners advised Second Nature Brands.
Summary
Insignia Capital Group has successfully exited its nine-year investment in Tillamook Country Smoker through a sale to Second Nature Brands, the snacking platform owned by European mid-market private equity firm CapVest Partners. The transaction represents a significant outcome for Insignia's lower middle-market strategy, having acquired the company from its founding family in May 2017 and more than tripled both revenue and EBITDA during its holding period.
Tillamook Country Smoker, founded in 1975 in Bay City, Oregon, by Dick and Art Crossley and operated as a third-generation family business before Insignia's acquisition, manufactures protein-rich, clean-label meat snacks including beef jerky, meat sticks, and smoked sausages. The company operates two manufacturing facilities in Oregon and achieved nationwide distribution across grocery, club, mass, convenience, and e-commerce channels. Insignia's value creation focused on modernizing manufacturing operations, expanding distribution into national retail networks, and developing new products such as the Zero Sugar line targeting consumers reducing added sugar intake.
The transaction occurs within a robust market environment. The U.S. meat-snack category generated approximately $20.5 billion in revenue in 2025 and is projected to grow at 6.9% annually through the mid-2030s, potentially approaching $40 billion. Jerky anchors the category at roughly 42% of sales, with growth driven by consumer migration toward high-protein, portable snacks and away from sugar and artificial ingredients—demand patterns that align directly with Tillamook Country Smoker's positioning. This market structure, characterized by fragmented regional competitors and national brands vying for retail shelf space, has attracted both strategic and financial buyers seeking scale and operational efficiency.
Second Nature Brands brings significant scale to the acquisition, with a diversified portfolio encompassing Kar's Nuts, Sahale Snacks, Sanders, Brownie Brittle, Voortman, and its branded Second Nature Snacks line, which together include top-selling trail mix brands nationwide. The company, headquartered in Madison Heights, Michigan, employs 380 people and operates two state manufacturing facilities. Insignia Capital, founded in 2011 and headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, focuses on control and influential minority investments ranging from $20 million to $100 million in lower middle-market companies with minimum $20 million revenue and $5 million EBITDA; the firm closed its third fund with over $500 million in capital commitments in November 2025. Houlihan Lokey served as financial advisor to Insignia Capital and Tillamook Country Smoker, while Solomon Partners advised Second Nature Brands.
Tillamook Country Smoker, founded in 1975 in Bay City, Oregon, by Dick and Art Crossley and operated as a third-generation family business before Insignia's acquisition, manufactures protein-rich, clean-label meat snacks including beef jerky, meat sticks, and smoked sausages. The company operates two manufacturing facilities in Oregon and achieved nationwide distribution across grocery, club, mass, convenience, and e-commerce channels. Insignia's value creation focused on modernizing manufacturing operations, expanding distribution into national retail networks, and developing new products such as the Zero Sugar line targeting consumers reducing added sugar intake.
The transaction occurs within a robust market environment. The U.S. meat-snack category generated approximately $20.5 billion in revenue in 2025 and is projected to grow at 6.9% annually through the mid-2030s, potentially approaching $40 billion. Jerky anchors the category at roughly 42% of sales, with growth driven by consumer migration toward high-protein, portable snacks and away from sugar and artificial ingredients—demand patterns that align directly with Tillamook Country Smoker's positioning. This market structure, characterized by fragmented regional competitors and national brands vying for retail shelf space, has attracted both strategic and financial buyers seeking scale and operational efficiency.
Second Nature Brands brings significant scale to the acquisition, with a diversified portfolio encompassing Kar's Nuts, Sahale Snacks, Sanders, Brownie Brittle, Voortman, and its branded Second Nature Snacks line, which together include top-selling trail mix brands nationwide. The company, headquartered in Madison Heights, Michigan, employs 380 people and operates two state manufacturing facilities. Insignia Capital, founded in 2011 and headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, focuses on control and influential minority investments ranging from $20 million to $100 million in lower middle-market companies with minimum $20 million revenue and $5 million EBITDA; the firm closed its third fund with over $500 million in capital commitments in November 2025. Houlihan Lokey served as financial advisor to Insignia Capital and Tillamook Country Smoker, while Solomon Partners advised Second Nature Brands.
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