Centre Partners has made a majority investment in Sun Orchard, a national provider of juice and beverage products to the foodservice industry. Marc Isaacs, Sun Orchard’s long-time majority shareholder, will continue to serve as President and CEO and will remain a significant shareholder.
Sun Orchard’s product portfolio consists of not-from-concentrate citrus juices (orange, lemon, lime, grapefruit), fruit ades, bar mixes, specialty smoothie bases, and other mixology and culinary products. Sun Orchard was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Tempe, AZ with an additional facility located south of Orlando in Haines City, FL (www.sunorchard.com).
Jean-Marc Rotsaert, a Centre Partners Operating Partner and a food and beverage executive with over 20 years of industry experience, has been named Executive Chairman of Sun Orchard. Mr. Rotsaert has previously held senior positions at The Campbell Soup Company, PepsiCo International, The Coca-Cola Company and AarhusKarlshamn USA, a vegetable fats and oil producer.
“We have been working with Jean-Marc Rotsaert to identify an opportunity to build a significant platform in the premium juice sector, and Sun Orchard is well-positioned for continued success with the highest-quality products and strong relationships with customers and suppliers,” said Michael Schnabel, a Centre Partners Managing Director. “We look forward to working with the Sun Orchard team to grow the business organically, by adding new product lines and entering new channels, and through select acquisitions.”
Centre Partners invests from $20 million to $60 million in North American based middle market companies that have $50 million to $500 million in revenue and $10 million to $60 million in EBITDA. Sectors of interest include consumer, healthcare and business services industries. The firm is currently investing through its sixth fund. Centre Partners was founded in 1986 and has offices in New York and Los Angeles (www.centrepartners.com).
“Centre Partners has a long and successful track record of being a constructive partner to businesses in the food and beverage industry. We are fortunate to have a new partner with the resources and operational expertise – in particular through the addition of Jean-Marc as our new Executive Chairman – to capitalize on the many attractive opportunities before us for the benefit of all our stakeholders,” said Mr. Isaacs.
Rabo Securities USA acted as financial advisor to Sun Orchard.
© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-5-15
