Advent International to acquire Provimi Pet Food

Advent International, the global private equity firm, today announced that it has agreed to acquire Provimi Pet Food (“PPF”), a leading European manufacturer of pet food from Provimi Group, a leader in animal nutrition, for an enterprise value of €188 million.

PPF is the third largest producer of private label wet and dry pet food in Europe, supplying approximately 280 customers, including major grocery retailers, in the 27 markets in which it operates. The business, headquartered in Budapest, employs around 1,000 staff and has eight production facilities across Europe. In 2010, the company reported total sales of €236 million.

PPF holds a strong position in its largest markets in Hungary, The Netherlands, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The growth in the private label pet food market in Central and Eastern Europe is expected to significantly outpace GDP growth over the coming years, driven by higher consumer purchasing power, demographic changes leading to higher pet ownership, as well as increasing acceptance of private label goods by consumers.

The investment by Advent International will support PPF’s growth plans, focused on increasing its market share through organic growth, developing a new range of products and services and entry into new markets.

Commenting on the acquisition, Chris Mruck, Managing Partner and Co-Head of Central Europe, Advent International said: “Provimi Group has established PPF as a European market leader. Our investment will build upon these strong foundations, enabling the business to capitalise on the growth opportunities that exist across Europe. PPF is a business with excellent prospects and we look forward to working with the management team to develop the company to its full potential.”

Albena Vassileva, Director with Advent International, added: “Advent's ability to structure and execute this complex multi-country acquisition is a testament to the strength of our pan-European network and our unrivalled coverage of Central and Eastern Europe. We look forward to supporting the next phase of PPF's development.”

Attila Balogh, Chief Executive Officer, Provimi Pet Food said: “Advent's investment in PPF is undoubtedly the start of an exciting new phase in the development of our company. The international experience that Advent has in the retail and consumer sectors as well as its established presence in our core markets in Central and Eastern Europe will be extremely valuable as we grow our business to better meet the needs of our customer base.”

Advent International has been investing in the retail and consumer products sectors since 1984 and has been investing across Central Europe with local funds and offices since 1994. The firm has financed and supported a number of companies in the retail and consumer goods sectors, globally to achieve successful growth. Recent investments include Devin, Bulgaria’s leading mineral water bottler and distributor of soft drinks, DFS, the UK’s number one sofa retailer, Uno, Turkey’s leading producer of branded, packaged bread and bakery products and Takko, one of the leading European value fashion retailers in the rapidly growing value fashion segment.

Advent was advised by Leonardo & Co (M&A), CMS (Legal) and Deloitte (Financial Diligence). The acquisition debt is arranged by Erste Group Bank, Raiffeisen Bank International and UniCredit.

The transaction is expected to complete within the next two months following regulatory and works council processes.