Key Points
This version of the article first appeared on CNBC’s Inside Wealth Newsletter. This is Robert Frank, our weekly guide to Net-Worth Investor and Consumer. Sign up to receive future editions directly in your inbox. Billionaire Daniel Lubetsky has made his fortune in a friendly snack bar made with nuts, fruits and whole grains. He sold his Friendly Snack Control Shares to Food Giant Mars in 2020. Through his family’s office, Camino Partners, he supported other popular consumer brands, including first casual chain Cava, prose for hair care brands, and Belgian boys’ breakfast items. Founded in 2023, Camino has recently invested in fitness chainbury and home health provider Livewell with a focus on longevity. It is one of more than 100 family offices built on food and beverage property, according to data provided exclusively by Fintrx, a private wealth intelligence platform. The growing class of family offices expands beyond the principal’s entrepreneurial roots in consumer packaging products. Another snack bar founder, Rxbar’s Peter Rahal, has invested in X (formerly Twitter) and biodegradable packaging company Cove through his family’s office, Litani Ventures. Paul Merage, co-founder of Hot Pockets’ parent company, Chef America, launched the family’s office in 2002 after selling the frozen food manufacturer to Nestlé. Today, Consolidated Investment Group has a vast real estate footprint in the US and Israel through direct investments and joint ventures, including over 25,000 apartment units, such as Dallas and Denver. In Camino’s case, investment in longevity is a natural evolution, according to Elle Lanning, president of the investment company, who has worked at Lubetsky since becoming kind in 2010. “For us, Barry is like a second wave of nutrition, like exercise as an impact on consumer health.” Camino has moved from early stage companies to proven companies. They typically earn at least $20 million in revenue. It unfolds anywhere between $20 million and $80 million before or over time per company. Initially, Lubetzky wanted to invest in younger companies. “He loves building from scratch,” Lanning said. However, she advised Lubetzky that early-stage investments could lead to greater failures, and told her that she had to think of a struggling portfolio company like a product that has failed to sell. “If you’re an early stage investor, you need to own this ability and call it to know when it’s not working,” she said. “And he can’t do that, you know, these are living creatures. These are people, their livelihoods.” In Lubetzky’s case, adventure outside the consumer’s packaged goods means calling out to the experts. When investing in other growth areas such as Aerospace or Deep Tech, Camino usually does so through a fund manager. “I think the reason we did the same in our lives is knowing what we know, knowing what we don’t,” Lanning said.
