Kyle Chapman
Managing Director
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- Full Name
- Kyle Chapman
- Title
- Co-Founder & Managing Director, BW Forsyth Partners; Chairman & CEO, Barry-Wehmiller Group, Inc.
- Firm
- BW Forsyth Partners (founded 2009 as Forsyth Capital Investors)
- Firm Type
- Private equity / "hybrid" (permanent-capital) equity firm — the direct investment arm of Barry-Wehmiller. *(Note: the stub's "Angel Investors" label does not match the firm's actual profile — BW Forsyth is a control-buyout PE firm, not an angel/seed investor.)*
- Investment Stage
- Control buyouts of established middle-market companies (platform and add-on acquisitions). *(Not seed-stage; the stub's "Seed Round" is inaccurate.)*
- Check Size
- Platform targets of roughly $1–20MM EBITDA; no minimum for add-on acquisitions
- Target Company Profile
- Established, cash-flow-positive founder- and family-owned businesses (not startups); seeking a controlling interest of 51%+
- Sector Focus
- Professional services (specialty insurance, investigation/claims, advisory) and highly engineered products and equipment (food processing, laboratory, material processing, infrastructure equipment and consumables)
- Geographic Focus
- North America and Europe
- Location
- St. Louis, Missouri
Background
Kyle Chapman is the co-founder and a Managing Director of BW Forsyth Partners, the direct investment arm of Barry-Wehmiller, the multi-billion-dollar global manufacturing and engineering-consulting firm founded by his father, Bob Chapman. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Commerce from the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia. Early in his career he worked in private equity at Banc of America Capital Investors, where he completed approximately $300 million in investments across a range of industries.
In 2009, Chapman co-founded Forsyth Capital Investors — later rebranded BW Forsyth Partners — alongside partners including Ryan Gable and Chet Walker. The firm grew into an $850 million-plus hybrid equity vehicle that pairs traditional private-equity fundamentals with Barry-Wehmiller's operational expertise and a "people-centric," long-horizon (evergreen/permanent-capital) model. He has served as chairman of BW Forsyth portfolio companies including Baldwin Technology, Inc. and Engle Martin & Associates, Inc.
Chapman represents the third generation of Chapman-family leadership at Barry-Wehmiller. He became interim CFO of Barry-Wehmiller in early 2020, was named President in 2020, and in 2025 added the CEO title when his father Bob Chapman stepped down as CEO after roughly 50 years (Bob remains Chairman). He also sits on the board of Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBSH) and has been active with KIPP: St. Louis, where he served as board chair and was recognized as a Champion for Education in 2023.
Investment Thesis & Focus
- Invests via control buyouts (51%+ ownership) of established middle-market businesses, not seed or venture-stage startups.
- Targets founder- and family-owned companies in the roughly $1–20MM EBITDA range for platform deals, with no minimum size for add-on acquisitions.
- Concentrates on two broad themes: professional services (specialty insurance, investigation and claims management, advisory) and highly engineered products and equipment (food processing, laboratory, material processing, infrastructure consumables).
- Differentiates on a "people-centric," patient-capital model — an evergreen/permanent capital base with perpetual investment horizon and interim liquidity options, drawing on Barry-Wehmiller's operating expertise rather than short-hold financial engineering. A portfolio leader described "the difference with BWFP" versus traditional PE as "striking."
- Geographic scope spans North America and Europe.
Notable Investments
- Engle Martin & Associates — BW Forsyth's first platform investment; a national provider of commercial property & casualty loss adjusting and claims management services.
- Baldwin Technology Company — Global manufacturer of process-automation equipment and consumables for printing, packaging, and industrial segments; acquired March 2012. Later bolted on Web Printing Controls Co. as an add-on.
- Machine Solutions, Inc. — Capital-equipment manufacturing platform, one of the firm's core sectors.
- HawkeyePedershaab — Manufacturer of concrete pipe, manholes, and precast products (founded 1877), based in Mediapolis, Iowa; acquired September 2016.
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