Kohlberg & Company has agreed to acquire the Sara Lee Frozen Bakery and Van’s businesses of Tyson Foods.
This transaction includes the Chef Pierre, Bistro Collection and Van’s brands, and a license to use the Sara Lee brand in certain channels. Hard assets acquired include Tyson’s Tarboro, NC and Traverse City, MI prepared foods facilities and a sales office in Canada. These three facilities have a total of 1,160 employees.
Kohlberg has partnered with industry executive C.J. Fraleigh on this transaction. Mr. Fraleigh has more than 30 years of experience in the consumer products industry and was until 2011 the CEO of Sara Lee – North America. He joined Sara Lee as its CEO of Food & Beverage in January 2005. Earlier in his career, he was the general manager of the GMC-Buick-Pontiac division during 2004 and executive director of its advertising and corporate marketing from 2001 to 2004. Currently, he is a board member of Gehl Foods (owned by Wind Point Partners) and Nonni’s Foods (owned by Vestar Capital Partners).
“I’m very excited to be joining the team,” said Mr. Fraleigh. “With established and iconic brands, including Sara Lee, Chef Pierre, Bistro Collection, and Van’s, this business is well-positioned to continue its historical growth trajectory. I look forward to working with the company’s employees to execute on growth opportunities we’ve identified and continue providing customers with excellent service, innovation and consistently high-quality products.”
“Kohlberg’s partnership with C.J., along with our depth of experience with food investments, creates an excellent opportunity to drive growth and value creation for all stakeholders,” said Seth Hollander, a Partner of Kohlberg.
Kohlberg & Company invests in companies in the industrial manufacturing; consumer products; business services; healthcare services; and financial services sectors. The firm concentrates on companies with EBITDAs between $20 million and $100 million where it can invest between $50 million and $200 million of equity. In March 2018, Blackstone acquired a minority equity interest in the firm. Kohlberg & Company was founded in 1987 and is based north of New York City in Mt. Kisco, NY (www.kohlberg.com).
Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) is one of the world’s largest food companies with market share leading brands in chicken, beef and pork as well as prepared foods, including bacon, breakfast sausage, turkey, lunchmeat, hot dogs, pizza crusts and toppings, tortillas and desserts. The company is headquartered in Springdale, AR (www.tysonfoods.com).
Rothschild & Co. is Tyson’s financial advisor on this transaction.
© 2018 Private Equity Professional | June 4, 2018
