Norwest Equity Partners (“NEP”), a leading middle-market investment firm, announced that it has acquired Apothecary Products Incorporated, a leading innovator, manufacturer and distributor of consumer healthcare products and pharmacy supplies. NEP purchased the company from Terry Noble, Pharmacist, Founder and CEO of Apothecary. The transaction closed February 28, 2014; financial terms were not disclosed.

Additional financing was provided by GE Capital, BMO Capital Markets, Golub Capital and Norwest Mezzanine Partners. Greene Holcomb Fisher served as financial advisor to Apothecary on the transaction.

Founded in 1975, Apothecary is a privately-held company with hundreds of patents and thousands of SKUs selling pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare products to independent and chain pharmacies, food and mass retailers, and distributors and wholesalers worldwide. Apothecary offers its customers a one-stop-shop solution with unmatched product breadth of both over-the-counter consumer health products and behind-the-counter pharmacy supplies, spanning across three categories, including pharmacy supply, medication management, and home healthcare.

Tim Kuehl, a NEP partner and Apothecary board member, stated, “On behalf of the NEP partnership, we are impressed with Apothecary’s solid reputation, long-term customer relationships, category leadership, and solid financial performance. Medical compliance is critical to enhancing healthcare outcomes while simultaneously lowering healthcare costs, both of which are central tenets of our healthcare investment strategy. We are excited to work with management toward further building Apothecary for the future.”

NEP has been investing in middle-market companies since 1961 and has deep experience working with both Minnesota-based companies as well as companies focused within the consumer products and services industry.

Apothecary is headquartered in Burnsville, Minnesota and operates a manufacturing facility in St. Charles, Michigan and has several strategic manufacturing partners in the U.S. and internationally.