Navis Food Partners, a portfolio company of Frontenac, has acquired Prime Source Foods, a New Hampshire-headquartered center-of-the-plate food distributor.
Earlier this month, Frontenac announced the formation of Boston-headquartered Navis Food as a holding company to consolidate its investments in the independent foodservice distribution industry. The acquisition of Prime Source is Navis Food’s second add-on acquisition.
Prime Source Foods is a center-of-the-plate food distributor – poultry, beef, pork, lamb, seafood – that serves more than 3,000 food service, retail, Asian and wholesale customers in the New England and Eastern New York regions. Other products include deli meats, cheeses and salads.
Prime Source, led by CEO Bill Conrad, operates three regional distribution centers in New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Maine, and is headquartered in Londonderry, New Hampshire.
Prior to being acquired by Navis Food, Prime Source was acquired in a management led buyout (then Poultry Products Northeast) from longtime owner Julian Stogniew in February 2019.
Navis Food made its first acquisition in August 2023 with the buy of City Line Distributors, a third-generation, family-owned specialty distributor headquartered in West Haven, Connecticut. The business operates in 30 counties across New England – serving Southern New England and Eastern New York – and provides food and food related items to restaurants, hotels, schools, colleges, and healthcare facilities.
Partnering with Frontenac on Navis Food is food distribution industry veteran Sean Griffin, now executive chairman of Navis Food, and City Line CEO Robert Berkowitz, now the CEO of Navis Food. On a combined basis, Mr. Berkowitz and Mr. Griffin have more than 80 years of operating experience leading foodservice companies in the Northeast marketplace.
The acquisition of Prime Source strengthens Navis Food’s presence in the protein category as well as its geographic service footprint in New England. Now in combination with City Line, Navis Food covers northern Maine to upstate New York and operates out of four facilities.
“We are elated to partner with Prime Source,” said Mr. Berkowitz. “Prime Source shares our vision of becoming a regional superpower in foodservice through a laser focus on servicing our customer and creating opportunities for our associates.”
“Today’s announcement of our new partnership with Prime Source is very good news for the independent foodservice operator in the Northeast,” said Mr. Griffin. “In combining the core strengths of City Line with the protein category dominance of Prime Source, we are building a network that will appeal to our customers who look to us for service, value and flexibility.”
Frontenac invests in lower middle-market businesses that have EBITDA from $5 million to $20 million and operate in the consumer, industrial, and services industries. In March 2022, Frontenac closed its twelfth fund, Frontenac XII Private Capital LP, with $520 million of capital. The firm was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Chicago.
Frontenac and Navis Food continue to seek complementary companies that can expand the platform both geographically and across categories.
© 2024 Private Equity Professional | March 19, 2024
