Milwaukee-based Klement’s Sausage Co. is for sale and could be sold as soon as today.
Sources familiar with the pending transaction said multiple parties are interested in acquiring the company, which is based on the city’s near south side at 207 E. Lincoln Ave.
Klement’s is being marketed for sale by a Minneapolis investment bank, sources said.
The potential interested buyers include Altamont Capital Partners, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based private equity firm, and a group of local investors led by veteran entrepreneur Andy Nunemaker, chief executive officer of West Allis-based Dynamis Software Corp. Nunemaker, who will receive a BizTimes I.Q. Award for innovation in business at the BizExpo on May 21, could not be reached for comment.
A spokeswoman for Klement’s declined to comment. Altamont representatives could not be reached for comment.
The Klement’s story spans back to 1956, when John, George and Ron Klement purchased the Badger Sausage Co. on Milwaukee’s south side. The name of the firm was changed to Klement’s Sausage Co. in 1960.
Ray Booth was hired as the first chief executive officer outside of the Klement family earlier this year, when John P. Klement retired Jan. 3. John Klement continues to serve as chairman of the board at the firm. Jeff Klement remains as vice president, and his brother, Tom, also works as plant manager.
Klement’s, which has nearly 500 employees, is perhaps best known as the corporate sponsor for the Klement’s Racing Sausages during Milwaukee Brewers’ games at Miller Park.
Klement’s, Milwaukee-based Usinger’s Famous Sausage and Sheboygan Falls-based Johnsonville Sausage LLC comprise a trifecta of Wisconsin companies that dominate the U.S. sausage market.
The news of the pending sale of Klement’s was first reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
