HM Capital Partners

HM Capital Partners was originally established in 1984 as Hicks & Haas, finding early success with the acquisition and merger of Dr Pepper and 7 Up. In 1989, the firm evolved into Hicks, Muse & Co., eventually becoming Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst (HMTF). During the 1990s, the firm became one of the most active buyout shops in the world, employing a buy-and-build strategy across the media, food, and manufacturing sectors while expanding aggressively into Europe and Latin America.

The firm faced significant challenges following the bursting of the dot-com and telecom bubbles, losing over $1 billion on technology-related minority investments and seeing several major buyouts, such as Regal Cinemas, end in bankruptcy. These setbacks led to the departure of co-founder Tom Hicks in 2004 and the spin-off of its European arm as Lion Capital LLP. The firm rebranded as HM Capital Partners in 2006 to reflect its new leadership.

In its final years, HM Capital focused on sectors including energy, food, and media. The firm began dissolving in 2013, with its specialized investment teams spinning off to form independent entities. The energy group founded Tailwater Capital, while the food-focused team established Kainos Capital, marking the end of the firm's operations.