Perky Jerky distributes its turkey and beef jerky products in 40,000 retail locations nationwide.

BOULDER, COLO. — Sunrise Strategic Partners, a Boulder-based brand accelerator, has made a minority investment in Perky Jerky, a premium meat snacks company. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Founded in 2009, Greenwood Village, Colo.-based Perky Jerky distributes its turkey and beef jerky products in 40,000 retail locations nationwide, including Whole Foods, Target, Wal-Mart, Costco, Kroger and CVS. The brand offers such bold flavor varieties as Jamaican spice, Korean barbecue and craft pale ale. The products are made in small batches and contain no preservatives, nitrates or added MSG.

Steve Hughes, c.e.o. of Sunrise Strategic Partners

“Perky Jerky is reinventing meat based protein snacking,” said Steve Hughes, chief executive officer of Sunrise Strategic Partners. “This award-winning, breakthrough product is thoughtfully handcrafted for exceptional taste and appeals strongly to healthy, active consumers.

“As founder of Perky Jerky, Brian Levin brings both a strong track record of growing emerging companies and a strong passion for the brand. I am very enthusiastic about working with Brian and the opportunities our partnership will create for Perky Jerky.”

Sunrise Strategic Partners offers growth capital and expertise to emerging brands that have reached $10 million to $20 million in revenue and have a strong proof of concept in the marketplace. The firm was founded by Mr. Hughes, founder and former c.e.o. of Boulder Brands, and Trilantic North America, a private equity firm. Mr. Hughes will serve on the Perky Jerky board of directors.

Brian Levin, founder of Perky Jerky
“Sunrise’s deep strategic experience in scaling businesses will be crucial to taking Perky Jerky to the next level,” Mr. Levin said. “We need a playbook to do this and the resources to implement it; Sunrise will be a crucial partner in the next phase of growth for our brand.”