NEW YORK and ATLANTA and LONDON, July 17,
2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CSM Bakery Solutions, a global
leader in bakery ingredients, products and services, today
announced it had reached an agreement for the sale of its BakeMark
business to Pamplona Capital Management.
The agreed upon sale is an important step in advancing CSM's
strategy to focus on its core business in Europe and North
America, according to CSM's President and CEO Marianne Kirkegaard.
"We have always had great appreciation for the value of the
BakeMark business but this sale will help us support our goal of
further strengthening our core business in Europe and North
America by focusing on our value added bakery products and
ingredients portfolio," she said. "Under Pamplona's ownership,
BakeMark can further strengthen its strong position and reputation
as the industry's supply and distribution market leader in
North America."
Based in Pico Rivera,
California, BakeMark provides distribution services through
a network of 25 distribution centers and three manufacturing
facilities across the United
States and Canada. BakeMark
offers a diversified line of products, ingredients and supplies to
the food industry under brands that include Westco, Trigal Dorado
and BakeSense.
William Pruellage, a Partner at
Pamplona, expressed his confidence in BakeMark's future.
"BakeMark is a market-leading specialty distribution platform
serving as the premier bakery ingredient supplier in North America," he said. "We believe BakeMark
is well positioned to succeed as a stand-alone entity and
capitalize on new growth opportunities. We look forward to
supporting Jim Parker, the President
and CEO of BakeMark, and the rest of the Company's exceptional
management team to build on its long history of providing trusted
and valuable service to the food industry."
Parker, commenting on the sale, expressed similar optimism.
"We are excited to be partnering with Pamplona for the next
stage of BakeMark's growth," he said. "As an independent company
with the support of Pamplona, BakeMark is ideally positioned to
continue providing customers with quality products and full-service
distribution capabilities."
Terms of the deal, which was facilitated by Harris Williams & Co., an M&A advisory
firm, were not disclosed. Sullivan & Cromwell LLP provided
legal counsel to CSM.
The BakeMark investment is being made from Pamplona's fifth
private equity fund, Pamplona Capital Partners V, L.P., a
$3.4 billion investment vehicle
raised in 2017. Barclays is serving as Pamplona's financial
advisor. Pamplona received legal advice from Goodwin Procter LLP.
Committed debt financing for the transaction has been provided by
the Senior Direct Lending Program, a joint venture between Ares
Capital Corporation and Varagon Capital Partners, and Northwestern
Mutual Capital.
About CSM Bakery Solutions
CSM Bakery Solutions is a
global leader in bakery ingredients, products and services for
retail and food service markets as well as artisan and industrial
bakeries. CSM serves more than 45,000 customers in 100-plus
countries and offers a broad portfolio of well-recognized brands
providing specialized ingredients (dry mixes, fillings,
icings, glazes, mélange, toppings, batter, frozen dough and more)
and finished products (cakes, donuts, muffins, brownies, cookies,
specialty bread, viennoiserie and more). CSM's mosaic of
heritage bakery brands includes some of the industry's most trusted
names: Brill, Henry & Henry, MeisterMarken, Multifoods, and
Waldkorn, to name but a few.
About Pamplona Capital Management
Pamplona Capital
Management is a New York,
Boston and London-based specialist investment manager
established in 2005 that provides an alternative investment
platform across private equity, fund of hedge funds, and
single-manager hedge fund investments. Pamplona manages
$15 billion in assets across a number
of funds for a variety of clients including public pension funds,
international wealth managers, multinational corporations, family
offices, and funds of hedge funds. Pamplona invests long-term
capital across the capital structure of its portfolio companies in
both public and private market situations. Please see
www.pamplonafunds.com for further information.
About BakeMark
With over 100 years of service to the
baking industry, BakeMark is recognized as an industry leader and
trusted partner for quality bakery ingredients, products, supplies
and service. As a manufacturer and distributor with 25 branches
conveniently-located across the U.S. and Canada, BakeMark delivers a complete line of
ingredients and supplies, ranging from bakery mixes, fillings &
icings, glazes, donut sugar and frozen varieties to flour, sugar,
shortening, dairy & egg, packaging & supplies and gourmet
chocolate through its exclusive brands: Westco, Trigal Dorado,
BakeSense, BakeQwik and C'est Vivant.
For More Information, Contact:
CSM Bakery Solutions
Dennis
Murphy
Vice President and Chief Communications Officer
O: 404-478-5529
M: 770-377-6329
E: dennis.murphy@csmbakerysolutions.com
Temple Bar Advisory (PR advisor to
Pamplona)
Ed Orlebar
+44 (0)7738 724 630
edo@templebaradvisory.com
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