European vending group Selecta has agreed to acquire Pelican Rouge, the Dutch coffee machine provider, for an undisclosed sum.
The combined business will be a leading vending operator with a presence in 15 countries, besides pro forma revenues of €1.3 billion and pre-tax earnings in excess of €200 million. Those markets include Belgium and the Netherlands, all of mainland Scandinavia, the UK and Ireland, France, Spain and Germany.
Pelican Rouge itself is active in eight countries with more than 150,000 customers. Across its entire European footprint, it serves 7 million cups of coffee a day, and 25,000 tons of coffee and coffee ingredients every year. To that, Selecta will add a network of more than 130,000 machines and a base of 6 million customers a day.
As well as its vending business, which operates machines in workplaces as well as the horeca channel, Pelican Rouge makes a range of retail coffees which it unveiled towards the end of last year.
The deal is expected to increase the cost-effectiveness of Selecta’s sourcing and procurement, with the Swiss-headquartered businesses expecting to deliver ‘improved profitability’ once the takeover is completed.
It is further expected that the combined business will benefit from revenue growth potential driven by comprehensive product portfolio in all markets, as well as stronger service capabilities and sales force.
Selecta CEO David Flochel said: “We are delighted to announce the combination of the Pelican Rouge Group and the Selecta Group. This marks the start of an exciting new chapter for our business and significant joint opportunities as a leading European operator.
“This partnership will provide a unique platform to better serve our customers, in line with our strategic focus on geographical reach, operational excellence, growth and innovation.”
Nedim Cen and Patrick Raming – Pelican Rouge’s chairman and delegated supervisory director – added: “In July 2016, we announced a strategic review of the business. In conjunction with our advisors we considered a number of different options and we are pleased to announce a transaction today which offers the best deal for all our stakeholders, including employees, clients and suppliers.
“As a combined group, we believe the company will be strongly placed to cement its position as a leading operator in the sector in Europe.”
The deal comes two years – almost to the day – after Pelican Rouge acquired some of Maas International’s European vending operations, including its business in Belgium, Luxembourg, the UK and Ireland.
And it’s over a year and a half since Douwe Egberts owner JAB Holdings struck a $280 million deal for Scandinavian coffee chain Espresso House.
The combination of Selecta and Pelican Rouge is expected, subject to customary closing conditions, to be completed by the end of the second quarter.
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