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Andrew H. Kalnow - President
Mr. Kalnow has worked on over 50 private equity transactions during his more than twenty years in private equities and finance. As its founding general partner, Mr. Kalnow led the investment activity on Alpha Capital's first fund which has achieved first quartile performance on a portfolio of 17 investments. Mr. Kalnow's skills in strategic and financial planning can be called upon in his frequent role as director or advisor to private companies, where he has served on boards of more than a dozen companies. In addition to his work with Alpha Capital, Mr. Kalnow has had substantial involvement in private equities with Calg Corporation, a family investment firm. He was a vice president and unit manager at The First National Bank of Chicago prior to founding Alpha Capital. Mr. Kalnow received his BA magna cum laude from Lawrence University and holds an MBA from Babson College.
Gary L. Stark - Managing Director
Mr. Stark joined Alpha Capital in September 1999. Mr. Stark focuses on management buyouts and recapitalizations in manufacturing, distribution, consumer product companies, and other industries. He is responsible for sourcing and evaluating transactions, due diligence, structuring, negotiating and closing the firm's transactions. Prior to joining Alpha Capital, he worked for two years in the investment-banking group of CIBC Oppenheimer in Chicago. Before CIBC Oppenheimer, he worked in the Financial Advisory Services Group of Ernst & Young LLP in Chicago. He received a BBA summa cum laude in finance from the University of Minnesota and an MBA from the University of Illinois. He is also a Chartered Financial Analyst.
John W. Rose - Principal (for financial sector investments)
Mr. Rose is a principal at Alpha Capital and works with the firm in his specialty area (financial services), while continuing to serve as president of McAllen Capital Partners, Inc. He has been a financial services executive, advisor, strategist and investor for over 26 years. Over the last eight years, he led investors in five turnaround banks, advised in two recapitalizations, and established three de novo institutions. During this period he also restructured and/or sold four banks for F.N.B. Corporation, a regional multi-bank holding company, while functioning as executive officer in charge of community banking. Prior to 1992, Mr. Rose was president of a venture capital firm specializing in bank turnaround investments; SVP of Corporate Finance and Strategic Planning at LaSalle Bank in Chicago; and an investment banker at William Blair & Co. In October 2002, he completed a 15 month assignment as CFO of Bay View Capital Corporation (NYSE: BVC), a successful portfolio company investment of Alpha Capital Fund III.
Chip Kalnow – Analyst
Mr. Chip Kalnow joined Alpha Capital Partners as an Analyst in June 2009. Mr. Kalnow is responsible for the identification and evaluation of potential investments across a range of industries. Prior to joining Alpha in 2009 he completed a summer internship in 2007 with Alpha before graduating from the University of Denver with a BSBA in Business Management.
J. Dirk Vos - Chairman, Board of Advisors
Mr. Vos is a member of Alpha Capital's CEO Advisor Group and also serves part-time on the general partner staff as Senior Advisor. Mr. Vos is available to serve as an interim CEO or CFO with companies in which Alpha Capital makes new investments, or those portfolio companies that may require management changes in the future. Mr. Vos currently is a management consultant providing strategic and financial advisory services to small and middle market companies. He serves on the boards of several privately held companies and not for profit organizations. Mr. Vos has had a long and notable career in corporate finance and banking. In his over three decades with First Chicago, he held senior management positions in corporate and merchant banking in Switzerland, Singapore and three locations in the U.S. At Bank One Corporation, the successor to First Chicago, he served as Executive Vice President and Head of Treasury Management Services. Mr. Vos received an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management and a BSBA in Economics from Northwestern University.
R.E. (Dick) George - Senior Advisor
Mr. George has been an active member of Alpha Capital's CEO Advisor Group and serves as Chairman of Fund III's CEO Advisors. A former CEO of three significant retail companies, Mr. George has a wealth of experience in the consumer sector. Mr. George spent much of his distinguished career with various operations of the Jewel Companies, Inc., a multi-billion-dollar grocery and drug store chain headquartered in Chicago. He began with Jewel Cos. in 1962 and rose to the position of executive Vice President in charge of accounting, treasury, and informational systems. From 1979 to 1988 he served as president and CEO of Osco Drug, Inc., a subsidiary which operated 680 stores in 1988 and had sales in excess of $3,000,000,000. In 1989, Mr. George founded and served as initial Chairman and CEO of Ulta 3 Cosmetics & Salon, Inc., a specialty retailer oriented to the personal care needs of the contemporary woman. Mr. George received his undergraduate and masters degrees from the University of Illinois and obtained a CPA following graduation.
Barbara Koren - Senior Advisor
Barbara Koren is the President of Edwards Consulting Group, a consultancy focused on providing operational expertise and superior results for both publicly and privately held companies. Prior to founding Edwards, Ms. Koren was President of The Kohler Company, Sterling Plumbing Group, a world leader in the design and manufacture of faucets, sinks, tub and shower doors, and vitreous china. She also served as President/COO of Holly Hunt, the preeminent U.S. designer of luxury furniture and textiles, and as President of Pliant Solutions, the consumer products division of the Pliant Corporation. She also held the position of Vice President Sales for the Eureka Company, a leading manufacturer of domestic and commercial floor care appliances. Ms. Koren is a former member of the Board of the American Hardware Manufacturers Association and is a member of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and a youth tutor at Christopher House, a neighborhood outreach program serving low income families. Ms. Koren’s degree is from the University of Wisconsin where she studied literature and philosophy.
Robert T. Lewis -
Senior Advisor Mr. Lewis is a member of Alpha Capital's
CEO Advisor Group and also serves part-time on the general partner staff
as Senior Advisor. As a Senior Advisor over the past two years, Mr.
Lewis has worked closely with the Alpha team on deal origination, due
diligence and consultation with portfolio company management. Previously
Mr. Lewis was vice president, general manager of the two largest
operating units at Babson Bros. Co., a $100 million private company
serving the dairy farm industry. Prior to joining Babson Bros. Co. in
1991, Mr. Lewis was a founder and served as president of CarCare
Enterprises, a twenty-two store automotive service business and a
successful Alpha Capital portfolio company. Before that, Mr. Lewis was a
strategic business unit manager and division general manager for twenty
two years with FMC Corporation. Mr. Lewis received an MBA from Harvard
Business School and a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of
Pennsylvania.
Timm R. Reynolds
-
Senior Advisor Mr.
Reynolds is Chairman of Horizon Genetics, Inc., an eight year old Illinois-based
agribusiness firm. Prior to co-founding Horizon, he spent thirty years in
banking, serving as a member of senior management of two major international
banks. In the past Mr. Reynolds has served as Chairman of the Lake Forest
Graduate School of Management, Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals and
member of the Plan Commission for Lake Forest. In December 2004 he became a
Director of the Western Golf Association/Evans Scholar Foundation. Currently Mr.
Reynolds is an alderman for the City of Lake Forest, Illinois, where he chairs
its Planning and Preservation Committee, and a member of the Board and former
Vice Chairman of Jane Addams Hull House Association in Chicago. He is also
active in Chicago real estate and farming in central Illinois. Mr. Reynolds
received his BA from Brown University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.
Nin Desai - Strategy, Corporate Development Advisor
Ms. Desai joined Alpha Capital Partners in 2007. Ms. Desai is responsible for identification and evaluation of potential investments across a range of industries. She also is responsible for business development opportunities for portfolio companies in local and international markets. Prior to Alpha she was with Pacific Crest Securities, a technology investment banking firm, in the west coast. Her experience spans all facets of mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance, including public offerings and private placements. She started her professional career at Merrill Lynch. She holds a BBA & MBA in Finance & International Business from Loyola University Chicago.
CEO Advisor Group
Alpha Capital also has enlisted a group of former or present chief executives to be a resource both to portfolio company management and the general partner at Alpha. Advisor members have valuable experience in the challenges of growing organizations and capitalizing on business opportunities. Depending upon the situation, a CEO Advisor may be available to serve on a portfolio company's board of directors or act as a consultant or mentor to management.
| CEO Advisor | BIO | Industry |
| David Ashcraft | Founder and CEO of RSC Corp. | Software/Technology |
| William E. Bennett | Former Executive VP and Chief Credit Officer at First Chicago | Financial Services |
| Richard Burkhart | CEO and Owner of New Century Simplimatic, Inc. | Metals/Manufacturing |
| Charles T. Cricks | Former Executive VP and COO of Health Care Solutions, Inc. | Healthcare |
| Gary Garrett | Former Senior Partner at Andersen Consulting | Software/Technology |
| R.E. (Dick) George | Former CEO to Osco Drug and Ulta 3 Cosmetics & Salon, Inc. | Consumer Products/Retail |
| Robert C. Jazwinski | President and Founder of JFS Wealth Advisors, LLC | Financial Services |
| Kris Klepper | President and CEO of Superior Distributing Co. | Consumer products/Distribution |
| Robert T. Lewis | Currently serves part-time on staff as Senior Advisor; Former VP & GM of the two largest operating units at Babson Bros. Co.; Former GM at FMC | Manufacturing |
| Douglas W. Mills | Former Senior Operating Executive of Quaker Oaks Corp. domestic food business | Consumer Products |
| John W. Rose | McAllen Capital Partners, Inc. | Financial Services |
| Michael A. Sachs | Founder and CEO of Sachs Group | Healthcare |
| David Y. Schwartz | Retired in 1997 from Arthur Andersen as Partner and Head of the Global Retail Practice | Retail |
| Tadd C. Seitz | Former CEO and Chairman of The Scotts Company | Consumer Products |
| David T. Shelby | Former CEO of ICM Industries, Inc. | Manufacturing |
| Kevin L. Verner | Former COO of WMS Industries, Inc.; Former VP of New Business Development and officer at R.J. Reynolds Nabisco | Consumer Products |
| J. Dirk Vos | Chairman, Alpha Fund III Board of Advisors; Former Executive Vice President at First Chicago | Financial Services |