Wind Point Acquires Hilex Poly

The venture capital firm Wind Point Partners has announced its acquisition of the plastic bag manufacturing firm Hilex Poly Co. LLC, based in Hartsville, S.C. In addition to manufacturing plastic bags, Hilex Poly has developed a closed loop recycling process to recycle plastic bags and films. Additionally, Hilex is involved in a number of initiatives to increase the use of recycle content in all of its products.
 

Wind Point, in partnership with Stan Bikulge, the CEO of the company since 2008, says they will look to create a range of strategies to accelerate growth by introducing new products and completing complementary acquisitions.
 

Wind Point also announced it has added Mike Fitzpatrick, Mike Riordan, Steve Hochhauser and Steve Humphrey to Hilex’s board of directors. Fitzpatrick is the former CEO of Citadel Plastics (a former Wind Point portfolio company) and previous president of Rohm & Haas; Riordan is the former CEO of the paper company Fort Howard; Steve Hochhauser is the former CEO of Johns Manville; and Steve Humphrey is the former CEO of Graphic Packaging. 
 

In a statement, Michael Nelson, a managing director at Wind Point, says, “Hilex is a clear market leader with a strong management team, high quality products and excellent customer service. Wind Point and Stan (Bikulge) have developed a clear value creation plan to accelerate growth by introducing new products and completing complementary acquisitions.”
 

Hilex operates eleven facilities in seven U.S. states. The company says it operates the largest closed loop plastic bag recycling facility in the world, where plastic bags are turned back into resin pellets and then back in to new bags. 
 

Bikulge says, “First, I want to thank all of our team members for the work they have done to continue to drive Hilex to new levels. Also, I want to thank TPG Growth for their support during their ownership. Lastly, we are extremely excited to partner with Wind Point. They understand this sector and are very supportive of our next phase of growth. We think it will be a powerful partnership.”