Operations

Jeni's former CEO launches fund for emerging restaurants

Amok Consumer Growth Fund's leadership team includes John Lowe, Rachelle Lynch, Timmy McCarthy and Ryan Parish. Photo: Amok Consumer Growth Fund

August 29, 2024

A team of veteran leaders in the restaurant and consumer packaged goods industries, including former CEO of Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams John Lowe, has created the Amok Consumer Growth Fund, a private equity fund that invests in and scales consumer-focused early-stage businesses, with an emphasis on restaurants and retail food products.

"We pick winners, and then we help them win bigger," Lowe said in a company press release. "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's leadership team includes: Rachelle Lynch, a career CPG sales leader who helped scale Burt's Bees, Plum Organics, Jeni's, Hu Kitchen and others; Timmy McCarthy, the man who brought Raising Cane's to Ohio and Ryan Parish, a New York City investment banking and private equity veteran.

Amok Consumer provides growth equity investments ranging from $500,000 to $5 million as well as behind-the-scenes operational support in sales, finance, organizational development and marketing, helping businesses scale and prepare for the next level of significant investment.

Amok Consumer has completed its first round of fundraising and is working toward final agreements to invest in two companies — a cafe concept and a consumer-packaged goods company whose products are sold at Whole Foods Market. One is LA-based and the other is in the Midwest. Amok Consumer will not comment further until those agreements are finalized.

"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."

Amok Consumer maintains an office at 875 N. High in Columbus' Short North neighborhood.

"Each of the partners behind Amok Consumer has had a successful career growing businesses in CPG, multi-location retail and e-commerce," Lowe said. "Together, we act as thought-partners to founders and leadership teams as they navigate the myriad issues impacting their business."