Former Jeni’s CEO John Lowe has formed a new private equity fund aimed at investing in and growing restaurants and retail food products.
The group, called Amok Consumer Growth Fund, eyes concepts that have built big customer followings, but need capital and expertise to expand. The company provides investments ranging from $500,000 to $5 million, in addition to support in sales, finance, organizational development, and marketing.
Amok Consumer has finished its first round of fundraising and is negotiating final agreements with two companies—a café concept and a CPG company whose products are sold at Whole Foods. One is in Los Angeles and the other is in the Midwest.
“We pick winners, and then we help them win bigger,” Lowe said in a statement. “Each of us on the Amok Consumer team has bet big on a brand long before the rest of the world saw its potential as a breakout winner. We’ve come together as a team because helping early-stage consumer brands is where the fun is. It gets us out of bed in the morning.”
Lowe served as Jeni’s CEO from July 2009 to December 2022. He remains a board member of the ice cream chain. He’s also been part of White Castle’s board since January 2012. During his time at Jeni’s, the brand grew from four stores and $1.2 million in annual revenue to 90-plus locations and close to $150 million in annual revenue. Shops span from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, and pints are sold in grocery freezer aisles in all 50 states. Additionally, Jeni’s boasts the nation’s largest direct-to-consumer ice cream shipping business.
His leadership team includes Rachelle Lynch, a career CPG sales leader who helped scale Burt’s Bees, Plum Organics, Jeni’s, Hu Kitchen, and others. In late 2023, she launched Golden Thread CPG, a consultancy for emerging brands. Another is Timmy McCarthy, who established Raising Cane’s in Ohio and built it to 44 locations before selling the franchise back to founder Todd Graves. The third member is Ryan Parish, a New York City investment banking and private equity veteran and co-founder of Triskelion Equity Partners. He has 25 years of experience in operational and strategic finance, mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, due diligence, valuation, structuring, documentation, and investor relations, including a focus on food and beverage and restaurants.
“We are investors, yes, but at the core we are operators who love helping founders and leaders fulfill their business potential,” Lowe said. “The early growth stage of businesses is where the fun is. It’s where we’ve each made a name and where we can lean in and provide the most value for companies.”
