Fulcrum Capital Partners has sold its portfolio company Qzina Specialty Foods North America to The Chefs’ Warehouse.
Qzina Specialty Foods is a supplier of gourmet chocolate, dessert and pastry products to restaurants, bakeries, patisseries, chocolatiers, hotels and cruise lines throughout the US and Canada. The company was founded in 1982 and is based in Pompano Beach, FL (www.qzina.com).
Fulcrum Capital Partners acquired Qzina Specialty Foods in December 2005. During the term of Fulcrum’s ownership, Qzina expanded geographically through the acquisition of Ambassador Fine Foods, centralized all head office and administrative functions, and introduced a full assortment of proprietary branded products.
The Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) is a distributor of specialty food products to menu-driven independent restaurants, fine dining establishments, country clubs, hotels, caterers, culinary schools and specialty food stores. The company carries and distributes more than 20,700 products to more than 12,500 customer locations throughout the United States. The Chefs’ Warehouse has facilities in New York, Washington D.C., San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Portland and Miami and is headquartered in Ridgefield, CT (www.chefswarehouse.com).
Fulcrum Capital Partners manages over C$750 million of capital and invests both equity and subordinated debt in companies with revenues of C$10 million to C$250 million. Sectors of interest include services, manufacturing, consumer products, distribution, food and retail. The firm has office in Vancouver and Toronto (www.fulcrumcapital.ca).
© 2013 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-10-13
