Private investment firm acquires jewelry company

SARASOTA — Latitude 27 Capital LLC, a Sarasota-based private investment firm that supports small and middle market companies, has acquired the assets of JK Jewelry Inc., a central New York state company. 

JK Jewelry Inc., which does business as JK Findings, is a 45-year-old global designer, manufacturer and wholesaler of jewelry components, also known as findings, according to a statement. John Kaupp, founder and CEO of JK Findings, will retire as CEO and remain as an equity investor and board member in the newly formed JK Acquisition LLC, the release adds. 

TCF Capital Funding and Route 2 Capital Partners provided debt capital to fund the purchase of JK Findings. Other terms of the deal weren't disclosed.  

“We see clear strategic growth paths in both product and market expansion that will fuel the future growth and success of JK Findings," says Latitude 27 Capital Managing Director Tim Tevens in the statement. "Given the size and breadth of this niche market and our long-term expectations, we believe with this acquisition we will achieve outsized returns for our investors.”

JK Findings was founded in 1975 as a wholesaler of jewelry findings. It is headquartered in Rochester, N.Y., with a sales office in Hong Kong. The release says Kaupp decided to insource the manufacturing process to better control supply chain quality and produce more innovative product offerings. Kaupp developed a management team that includes 20-year veteran Joni Lucas. Lucas, who has held the combined positions of CFO and COO of JK Findings for the last 14 years, will succeed Kaupp as CEO.

Latitude 27 Capital was founded in 2018. It invests in or acquires dynamic, small and middle-market companies. It has a particular interest in opportunities that allow the company to partner with owners and management teams to improve operating performance, open new markets and increase shareholder value, the statement says.