Advent International has added two new senior advisors to the firm with the hirings of Todd Lachman, former global president of Mars Petcare and Larry Bodner, former chief financial officer of Big Heart Pet Brands.
Messrs. Lachman and Bodner will work with Advent’s retail, consumer and leisure team to identify and evaluate investment opportunities in the consumer products space. According to Advent, they will have a particular focus on opportunities in the food, home and personal care sub-sectors, with an emphasis on situations where they could provide direct executive leadership.
“Todd and Larry’s combined expertise in the consumer sector and in managing complex global organizations will significantly enhance our ability to proactively source and execute on new investments in the consumer space,” said Jeff Case, a managing director at Advent. “We have known and admired Todd and Larry for some time and are excited they have agreed to partner with us.”
Mr. Lachman most recently served as global president of Mars Petcare where he drove market share gains through both organic growth and add-on acquisitions such as the Iams/Eukanuba buy from Procter & Gamble. Prior to this role, Mr. Lachman was president of Mars Chocolate North America and Latin America. Prior to Mars, Mr. Lachman served as executive vice president at Del Monte Foods Company, where he, along with Mr. Bodner, led a portfolio realignment and the acquisition of the Meow Mix and Milkbone brands. Previously, he also held senior management roles at H.J. Heinz Company and Procter & Gamble. At H.J. Heinz Company, Mr. Lachman worked directly under the guidance of current Advent Operating Partner, Bill Johnson, who served as chairman, CEO and president.
“The consumer products space is a dynamic and fragmented industry,” said Mr. Lachman. “I have spent my career in this sector and am excited to work with Advent, and reunite with Bill, to help identify attractive investment opportunities and create value in businesses by driving revenue and earnings growth.”
Most recently, Mr. Bodner was the chief financial officer at snacks and pet food company Big Heart Pet Brands. Prior to Big Heart, he was the chief financial officer of Del Monte Foods and before Del Monte, he held senior management roles at Walt Disney Company and Procter & Gamble.
“Advent offers a combination of operational expertise and financial resources that align well with the needs of consumer products companies,” said Mr. Bodner. “I look forward to working closely with Todd and the Advent team to build on the firm’s strong track record in the global consumer space.”
In the US consumer vertical, Messrs. Lachman and Bodner will join an Advent team of independent advisors that includes Operating Partners Bill Johnson, former Chairman, CEO and President of H.J. Heinz, and Brad Alford, former CEO of Nestle USA.
Advent has been investing in the retail, consumer and leisure industry for 25 years and has completed over 65 investments in the sector. Recent consumer investments include Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals Limited, a maker of consumer fans, pumps, lights and kitchen appliances acquired in July 2015 (www.cgglobal.com); Noosa Yoghurt, a maker of branded yoghurt acquired in November 2014 (www.noosayoghurt.com); Serta Simmons Bedding acquired in October 2012 (www.serta.com); Party City, an operator of retail party stores acquired in August 2008 (www.partycity.com); and Partner in Pet Food (www.ppfeurope.com) which was acquired in June 2011 and sold in sold in April 2015.
In addition to the retail, consumer and leisure sector, Advent invests in business and financial services; healthcare; industrial; and technology, media and telecom. The firm has offices in 16 countries and employs 170 investment professionals across Western and Central Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia. Founded in 1984 and headquartered in Boston, Advent has $29 billion in assets under management and has completed more than 300 buyout and private equity transactions (www.adventinternational.com).
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 3-21-16
