Appvion Announces Leadership Transition

ROSEMONT, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Appvion (the “Company”), a Wynnchurch Capital, L.P. (“Wynnchurch”) portfolio company, announced today that Paul Charapata, former President and CEO of recently acquired Nekoosa Coated Products, LLC (“Nekoosa”), has been named CEO of the Appvion platform. The current CEO, Laurie Andriate, will transition to the Board of Directors.

With more than 25 years of industry experience, Paul brings a wealth of knowledge to Appvion. Paul started his career at Avery Dennison, leading engineering, operations and several growth businesses. He later entered the private equity arena, joining Dunsirn Partners, and then transitioned into the CEO role for the portfolio company, Nekoosa. Leading Nekoosa with the support of dedicated team members, Paul successfully transformed the business by completing nine acquisitions with three different private equity partners.

“I am very excited about the opportunity to lead this great business and dedicated team,” said Paul Charapata. “I have had the privilege of leading Nekoosa for over 15 years and believe there is an amazing opportunity for the combined company to expand its market presence and deliver increasing value to our customers. I look forward to building on the strong Appvion and Nekoosa legacies and driving new successes in partnership with our strong team.”

Greg Gleason, Managing Partner at Wynnchurch, said, “We are excited to have Paul lead Appvion with his strong track record of driving strategic growth with an outstanding team and culture. We are also appreciative of Laurie’s success positioning Appvion as a commercial leader in the specialty material sector that is well positioned for its next chapter of growth. We look forward to working with Laurie on the board as a valuable resource to the Company.”

About Appvion:

Based in Appleton, Wisconsin, Appvion is a pioneer in the specialty and high-performance coatings market. Appvion’s coating solutions are applied to a wide variety of flexible substrates, including products from an FDA-compliant facility. Primary product offerings include direct thermal labels and film solutions and renewable, fiber-based consumer and industrial packaging solutions. For more information, please visit: www.appvion.com.

About Wynnchurch:

Wynnchurch Capital, L.P., headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois, with an office in New York and an affiliate in Canada, was founded in 1999 and is a leading middle-market private equity investment firm. Wynnchurch’s strategy is to partner with middle market companies in the United States and Canada that possess the potential for substantial growth and profit improvement. Wynnchurch Capital manages a number of private equity funds with $5.3 billion of regulatory assets under management and specializes in recapitalizations, growth capital, management buyouts, corporate carve-outs, and restructurings. For more information, please visit: www.wynnchurch.com.