M&A Deal Summary

Stockwell Capital and Lion Capital Acquire Findus

On July 23, 2008, private equity firms Stockwell Capital and Lion Capital acquired food company Findus from CapVest and European Capital for 1.1B GBP

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Stockwell Capital’s 3rd and Lion Capital’s 6th transaction in the Food sector.
  • This is Stockwell Capital’s 15th and Lion Capital’s largest (disclosed) transaction.
  • This is Stockwell Capital’s 4th and Lion Capital’s 5th transaction in the United Kingdom.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2008-07-23
Target Findus
Sector Food
Buyer(s) Stockwell Capital
Lion Capital
Sellers(s) CapVest
European Capital
Deal Type Secondary Buyout
Deal Value 1.1B GBP

Target

Findus

London, United Kingdom
Findus is a frozen food group and one of Europe’s overall food manufacturers. Through its Young's and Findus brands, category leaders within the UK, the Nordic region, and France, the Group's portfolio of leading brands is unmatched in its strength and awareness with consumers in its core markets. Findus was founded in 1945 and is based in London, United Kingdom.

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Buyer(S) 2

Buyer

Stockwell Capital

Austin, Texas, United States

Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 2002
PE ASSETS 750M USD
Size Middle-Market
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Stockwell Capital is a co-investment firm, focused on making minority investments alongside private equity sponsors. Stockwell is a generalist investor, with no sector preferences and looks to commit $3 to $10 million per investment. The Firm will consider opportunities throughout the US and Europe and prefers late-stage or growth equity situations. Stockwell Capital was formed in 2002 and is based in Chicago.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 41 of 44
Sector (Food) 3 of 3
Type (Secondary Buyout) 9 of 10
Country (United Kingdom) 4 of 4
Year (2008) 5 of 6
Size (of disclosed) 15 of 27
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2008-07-22 Covenant Care

Aliso Viejo, California, United States

Covenant Care is an operator of long-term care centers through its network of facilities, with over 5,000 licensed beds located throughout seven states. Covenant Care is based in Aliso Viejo, California.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2008-07-24 Best PumpWorks

Houston, Texas, United States

Best PumpWorks is one of the largest and respected pump distributor, supplier and remanufacturer in the world. In business for over three decades, the company has built its reputation on superior pump engineering, inventory, delivery and service.

Buy -
Buyer

Lion Capital

London, United Kingdom

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 2004
PE ASSETS 4.3B EUR
Size Mega
Type Sector Focused
DESCRIPTION

Lion Capital LLP is a specialist private equity firm focused on consumer-oriented opportunities throughout Europe and North America. Specific areas of interest include apparel, accessories, luxury goods, food, and specialty retail. Lion Capital LLP was formed in 2004 and is based in London. The Firm has an additional office in New York City.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 16 of 42
Sector (Food) 6 of 10
Type (Secondary Buyout) 7 of 20
Country (United Kingdom) 5 of 10
Year (2008) 4 of 5
Size (of disclosed) 1 of 15
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2008-07-18 Russian Alcohol

Moscow, Russia

Russian Alcohol is a producer of vodka and ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages. Russian Alcohol was founded in 2003 and is based in Moscow, Russia.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2008-08-01 Van Geloven

Tilburg, Netherlands

Van Geloven is a producer of frozen snacks and appetizers in the Benelux market. The company produces various ragouts products (such as croquettes and bitterballs), satay, nasi and bami products (ethnic Indonesian fried rice, respectively, noodle dish) and minced-meat rolls (frikadellen, hamburgers). Van Geloven was formed in 1960 and is based in Tilburg, Netherlands.

Buy €260M

Seller(S) 2

SELLER

CapVest

London, United Kingdom
Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1999
PE ASSETS 4.0B EUR
Size Large
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

CapVest is a UK-based private equity firm that targets investments in mid-market businesses across Europe. CapVest focuses on profitable companies with growth potential and strong management. Specific areas of interest include food/beverages (especially frozen food sector), healthcare, real estate, retail, media, hotel/leisure, and telecommunication services. CapVest is affiliated with junior capital investor, MezzVest. CapVest was formed in 1999 and is based in London.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 3 of 11
Sector (Food) 2 of 7
Type (Secondary Buyout) 2 of 4
Country (United Kingdom) 2 of 4
Year (2008) 1 of 1
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2008-01-16 United Coffee

Geneva, Netherlands

United Coffee (formerly Drie Mollen) is one of Europe’s largest coffee roasters, producing and distributing a wide range of coffee, coffee machines and related services through retail and out-of-home distribution channels, which includes hotels, restaurants and cafés.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2011-09-27 RenoNorden

Frogner, Norway

RenoNorden is a specialist provider of waste collection services, focusing on municipal waste collection. RenoNorden was founded in 2000 and is based in Frogner, Norway.

Buy -
SELLER

European Capital

London, United Kingdom
Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 2005
PE ASSETS 1.2B EUR
Size Large
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

European Capital is the European investment affiliate of American Capital. European Capital looks to provide a variety of investment and financing solutions including unitranche debt, mezzanine capital, senior debt, and equity co-investment. Funds are typically used to support buyouts, recapitalizations, finance growth, and make acquisitions. European Capital is sector agnostic, however the Firm has a preference for investments in the consumer, technology, manufacturing, services, and distribution sectors. European Capital was formed in 2005 and is based in London.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 11 of 54
Sector (Food) 1 of 5
Type (Secondary Buyout) 7 of 24
Country (United Kingdom) 2 of 12
Year (2008) 3 of 5
Size (of disclosed) 5 of 20
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2008-06-26 Unipex Group

Paris, France

Unipex Group is a developer, manufacturer, and marketer of more than 2000 value-added products for the cosmetics, pharmaceutical, chemical and nutrition industries, Its ‘Active Ingredients and Specialty Chemicals’ division develops and produces innovative active ingredients, in addition to distributing active ingredients and special chemicals on behalf of third parties. Unipex Group was founded in 1968 and is based in Paris, France.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2008-09-16 CEPL

Beville-le-Comte, France

CEPL is a contract logistics company specializing in the high-growth, detailed picking segment of the warehouse logistics industry with operations in France and Germany. CEPL was founded in 1998 and is based in Beville-le-Comte, France.

Buy -
Mergr

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