Business Description:

Houston Harvest Acquisition, LLC owned the majority of the stock in Houston Harvest, Inc.

Houston Harvest, Inc. (“HHI”), based in Franklin Park, Illinois, is a $80 million designer, manufacturer, and distributor of food gifts and popcorn tins.  Houston Harvest is the leading supplier of seasonal food gifts and popcorn tins to mass retailers like Wal-Mart, Target and Kmart.  The Company has licensing agreements with major food and entertainment companies which it uses to brand its popcorn tins and gift baskets.

Transaction Background:
HHI was formed in 1997 through the merger of Houston Foods, a TCW portfolio company, and Golden Harvest, a Merit portfolio company.  As the last investment for both the TCW and Merit funds, they had been actively looking to sell the Company for over two years to close out their funds (the funds were over 10 years old). Blackstreet purchased the Company from TCW and Merit in conjunction with the existing management team who also invested in the transaction. 

Investment Thesis:
Blackstreet believes the strong market position and low-cost production capabilities of the popcorn tin business provide a stable platform for growth.  In addition, Blackstreet believes there are significant opportunities to restructure the food gift business into a profitable division.  The company has strong existing management in place and the potential to grow both the popcorn and food gift businesses.