LeaderShift Blog, Hunt Executive Search

Mondelez to buy snack business from Danone
11/2/2012

Mondelez to buy snack business from Danone

Mondelez International is acquiring the Vitasnella snack business from Danone in its first purchase since spinning off from Kraft. Danone will retain the Vitasnella brand for cheese and yogurt, while Mondelez will be responsible for biscuits, bread derivatives and snacks.
Flower Foods to Acquire Certain Sara Lee, Earthgrains Assets
11/2/2012

Flower Foods to Acquire Certain Sara Lee, Earthgrains Assets

Flowers Foods, Inc. will acquire certain assets and trademark licenses from BBU, Inc., a subsidiary of Grupo Bimbo S.A. B. de C.V. Under the terms of the transactions, Flowers will receive perpetual, exclusive, and royalty-free licenses to the Sara Lee and Earthgrains brands for sliced breads, buns, and rolls in the state of California, which together account for annual sales of approximately $134 million.

Flowers also will receive perpetual, exclusive, and royalty-free license to the Earthgrains brand for a broad range of fresh bakery products in the Oklahoma City, Okla., market area.

"The acquisition strengthens our market presence in California, adding about 14.5 million people to the 70 percent of the U.S. population that currently has access to our fresh breads and rolls,” says George E. Deese, Flowers Foods’ chairman and CEO. “This moves us closer to our goal of reaching 75 percent of the U.S. population through our direct-store-delivery system by 2016."

Both transactions will be completed in phases. The Oklahoma City license will be completed shortly, and the first phase of the California transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of fiscal 2013.

Flowers Foods has experience integrating acquisitions; the company has completed more than 100 acquisitions since listing publicly in 1968, including 13 in the past decade. Most recently, Flowers acquired Tasty Baking Company in 2011 and Lepage Bakeries, Inc. in 2012.
B&G Foods acquires two snack brands from Chipita America for $62.5m
11/1/2012

B&G Foods acquires two snack brands from Chipita America for $62.5m

US-based B&G Foods has completed the acquisition of New York Style and Old London snack brands from Chipita America for approximately $62.5m in cash.

The acquisition includes a manufacturing facility at Yadkinville, North Carolina, which employs about 250 people.

B&G Foods expects the acquisition to be immediately accretive to earnings per share and free cash flow. It expects the brands to generate EBITDA of approximately $8m to $9m and net sales of approximately $45m to $50m in 2013.

The New York Style brand offers products such as bagel crisps, mini bagel crisps, Pita chips and Panetini Italian toast, which have been developed to reflect the taste of New York City's traditional bakeries.

The Old London brand offers Melba toasts and snacks, bagel chips, as well as speciality snacks under the Devonsheer and JJ Flats names.

B&G Foods manufactures a range of shelf-stable foods across the US, Canada and Puerto Rico, while Chipita America, a subsidiary of Greece-based Chipita, produces bakery and confectionery products.
Carrefour sells Malaysia operation to Japan's Aeon
11/1/2012

Carrefour sells Malaysia operation to Japan's Aeon

French retail giant Carrefour says it has sold its network of stores in Malaysia to Japan's Aeon for an enterprise value of 250 million euros ($A315.28 million).

"The transaction is part of Carrefour's strategy of refocusing on its core activities and allocating its resources to mature countries where it occupies strong and established positions and emerging markets where it has strong growth potential," the French retailer said.

An enterprise value usually includes the value of the debt of the company being acquired minus cash in the business. Carrefour said Aeon would gain a leading position in the Malaysian market with the sale.

With 26 hypermarkets, Carrefour was the fourth largest retailer in Malaysia with net sales of 400 million euros ($A504.45 million) in the year to June.

A major retailer in Japan, Aeon already has 29 stores in Malaysia.

Carrefour, the world's second-biggest retailer by sales after Walmart, has been seeking to rejuvenate its performance which has been held back by the slowdown in its core European markets.

The shakeup and refocus of its operations helped generate a 2.1 per cent-increase in third-quarter sales.

Earlier this month it sold off its operations in Colombia for an enterprise value of 2 billion euros ($A2.52 billion).
Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Izod, Speedo Brand are United in $2.9 Billion Deal
10/31/2012

Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Izod, Speedo Brand are United in $2.9 Billion Deal

PVH a clothing maker whose brands include Tommy Hilfiger, Izod and Calvin Klein sportswear, agreed to pay $51.75 in cash plus nearly a fifth of a share of its stock for each share of Warnaco Group Inc., which licenses the Speedo brand and Calvin Klein underwear and jeans.

The deal, expected to close early next year, would unite the Calvin Klein brand at a single manufacturer and give PVH a bigger global footprint, especially in emerging markets, said PVH Chief Executive Manny Chirico, in an interview.

The acquisition is the second big purchase for PVH in just over two years, and will increase its clout with the department stores that sell much of its merchandise. The apparel company isn't a household name, though it owns many well-known brands. In 2010, it agreed to buy Tommy Hilfiger for about $3 billion, making it the biggest menswear supplier to retailer Macy's Inc

PVH and Warnaco had talked on and off about a merger for eight years, but circumstances were never quite right. The discussions started in 2003, before either Mr. Chirico or Warnaco's CEO, Helen McCluskey, were in their posts, Mr. Chirico said.

PVH had just acquired the Calvin Klein license that covered women's sportswear and men's shirts, and was interested in bringing Calvin Klein underwear and jeans into its fold, he said.

PVH and Warnaco had tried to buy one another or merge at least six times over the past few years, depending on which company's stock was higher at the time, said Ken Berliner, president of Peter J. Solomon Co., PVH's lead adviser on the deal. A previous round of talks ended in 2010 after the Tommy Hilfiger acquisition made PVH a much larger company than Warnaco, a person familiar with the deal said.

The deal comes at an odd time for Warnaco and Ms. McCluskey, who just took the CEO job in December. The executive presented her own strategic plan for the company earlier this year.

In addition, acquiring Warnaco will help PVH's brands expand internationally. The bulk of PVH's business is in the U.S., and the company has a sizable presence in Europe. Warnaco, meanwhile, has factories, retail operations and management in Asia and Latin America, two fast-growing markets where many apparel makers hope to expand.
Hain Celestial acquires Premier Foods’ packaged grocery brands for £200m
10/31/2012

Hain Celestial acquires Premier Foods’ packaged grocery brands for £200m

Hain Celestial, a US-based natural and organic food products company, has completed the acquisition of some of the packaged grocery brands of UK-based Premier Foods in a £200m cash-and-stock deal.

The consideration consisted of cash payment of £170m and 836,426 shares of Hain Celestial that are estimated to be worth at least £30m.

The acquisition includes brands such as Hartley's jams and marmalades, Sun-Pat peanut butter, Gale's honey, Robertson's jams and marmalades, and Frank Cooper's jams, which together generated over $250m in sales in fiscal 2011.

The deal also includes Premier Foods' manufacturing base in Cambridgeshire, UK.

Hain Celestial president and CEO Irwin Simon said the acquisition will enable the company to expand in the UK, while simultaneously positioning it among the leading food companies in the country.

The acquired business will become a part of Hain Daniels, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hain Celestial which was established in October 2011 following the acquisition of UK-based Daniels Group.

In addition, the acquired grocery brands will be combined to form a new Ambient Grocery Division, which will supply products to leading food retailers, food service, business-to-business and export companies in the UK.

Premier Foods has been struggling with a debt of £1.3bn, which was built up through acquisitions of several brands including Homepride and Fray Bentos. To lower its debt, the company announced in October 2011 that it would focus on eight 'power brands' and divest select businesses.
Royal DSM acquired Cargill cultures and enzymes business
10/26/2012

Royal DSM acquired Cargill cultures and enzymes business

Vitamin maker Royal DSM said Friday it has reached an agreement to acquire Cargill Inc’s cultures and enzymes business in an 85 million euro ($109.8 million) cash deal.

The transaction is expected to close in the next couple of months. Netherlands-based DSM and Cargill said in September they were in talks about a potential deal.

The unit of Wayzata, Minn.-based Cargill has factories in Waukesha and France and sales of about $58 million per year, supplying the dairy and meat industries.

DSM said the acquisition allows it to boost sales and capture benefits in global manufacturing and customer reach as well as innovation capabilities in biotechnology and other areas. It also makes DSM a tier one supplier of cultures and enzymes to the global dairy market.

“This is a very important growth-enhancing acquisition for our food specialties business and fully fits our strategy as we continue to create value for all stakeholders by providing innovative, sustainable solutions to the world’s greatest current and future challenges,” said Stephan Tanda, a member of the DSM board who oversees its nutrition unit.

The acquisition of the Cargill business is the eighth for DSM’s nutrition division since September 2010.
McCain Foods to acquire PinguinLutosa’s potato unit for EUR225m
10/22/2012

McCain Foods to acquire PinguinLutosa’s potato unit for EUR225m

McCain Foods, a frozen food company based in Canada, has entered into an agreement to acquire the potato unit of Belgian frozen vegetables producer PinguinLutosa for EUR225m.

The acquisition includes Lutosa's operations in production, marketing and distribution of frozen, chilled and dehydrated potato products, as well as the Lutosa brand.

McCain Continental Europe chief executive officer Jean Bernou said the acquisition is a part of the company's strategy to reinforce its core potato business in Europe.

"The products and brand positioning of Lutosa and McCain are highly complementary. Lutosa will help us to further expand our product offering and cater to a wider range of customers while ensuring continuity in terms of investments and optimal service quality," Bernou added.

PinguinLutosa is involved in three segments: deep-frozen vegetables, potatoes and canned goods. It has 17 production sites in Belgium, France, UK, Poland, Germany and Hungary.

McCain Foods produces frozen food products and is a leading manufacturer of frozen potato specialities. Its products can be found in restaurants and retail stores in over 160 countries around the world.
Coke and P&G Executives Join GS1 Board
1/12/2012

Coke and P&G Executives Join GS1 Board

Coke and P&G Executives Join GS1 Board

Melvin Landis of Coca-Cola Refreshments and Roberto Magaña of Procter & Gamble have been appointed to the GS1 US Board of Governors. GS1 US is a not-for-profit organization that develops supply-chain standards, solutions and services for 25 industries.
Anheuser-Busch Names Blaise D'Sylva VP of Marketing
1/12/2012

Anheuser-Busch Names Blaise D'Sylva VP of Marketing

Anheuser-Busch Names Blaise D'Sylva VP of Marketing

Anheuser-Busch, the U.S. subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev, names Blaise D'Sylva to lead its U.S. media, sports and entertainment marketing division, responsible for directing the company's category-leading investments in growing its brands through media, sports and entertainment marketing properties at both the national and local levels. D'Sylva will report to Paul Chibe, Vice President of U.S. Marketing and joins the company on January 16, 2012.

LeaderShift Blog

LeaderShift Blog

Human Capitalist

Leadershift Insights

Video Library

Leadershift Blog