New York, United States
Citicorp Venture Capital (CVC) today announced that it has made a controlling investment in leading foodservice disposables manufacturer Waddington North America, Inc. (WNA). Norwest Equity Partners (NEP), a leading middle market private equity firm, and WNA management also participated in the investment.
WNA designs and manufactures a variety of premium single-serve products for the foodservice industry including dinnerware, drink ware, serving ware, take-out containers and cutlery. Headquartered in Covington, KY, WNA operates six manufacturing facilities throughout the United States and Canada, providing foodservice disposables for use by restaurants, caterers and consumers.
Industry trends have also been favorable for WNA as it continues to be a market leader targeting the rapidly growing niche and high value-added segments of the $4 billion rigid plastic sector of the disposable tableware market. Mike Evans, WNA CEO, stated, "We are thrilled to join the CVC portfolio and are looking forward to realizing our growth plans with our new investment partners. CVC and NEP have significant plastic and packaging experience combined with capital to help us grow both internally and through acquisitions."
WNA's focus on technical innovation, a broad product line offering, and a high level of customer service, have all helped it to establish long-term customer relationships and achieve the number one market position in North America in multiple premium product categories. With more than 620 distinct products with diversity of package size, color and presentation, WNA generates industry leading margins and dominates the premium end of the plastic foodservice disposables market with its Masterpiece(TM), Reflections(TM) and Classicware(TM) product lines.
Joseph S Levy, CVC Managing Partner, stated, "We are looking forward to our partnership with the WNA management team and are excited about WNA's history of product innovation and the continued growth opportunity going forward. WNA differentiates itself as a one-stop shop for its customers with its broad product offering, and with new technologies and proprietary value-added products under development, the Company is well-positioned for continued growth."
Prior to this transaction, WNA was a portfolio company of Code Hennessy & Simmons LLC. Ropes & Gray LLP provided legal services and SG Americas Securities, LLC a subsidiary of Societe Generale Corporate and Investment Banking served as financial advisor in connection with this transaction.
For more information, please visit www.wna.biz.
About Citicorp Venture Capital
CVC, founded in 1968, is Citi Alternative Investments (CAI) leveraged buyout platform focused on making control equity investments in U.S.-based middle-market companies. Transactions are generally between $100 million and $500 million. CVC supports experienced management teams in companies best-positioned to benefit from changing industries. Its strategy is to identify market leaders operating in dynamic sectors leading to superior growth and value creation.
CAI is an alternative investment platform that manages a wide range of products across five asset classes, including private equity, hedge funds, real estate, structured products and infrastructure. CAI manages capital on behalf of Citi, as well as third-party institutional and high net worth investors. As of June 30, 2007, CAI had approximately $59.2 billion of un-levered assets under management, ranking CAI among the world's largest alternative asset managers. CAI's goal is to enable its 16 investment centers to retain the entrepreneurial qualities required to capitalize on evolving opportunities, while benefiting from the intellectual, operational and financial resources of Citi.
About Norwest Equity Partners
Since its founding in 1961, Norwest Equity Partners (NEP) has earned a reputation as one of the premier private equity investment firms in the United States providing middle market companies with the capital they need to reach their goals. The firm focuses on providing equity investments of $20-$100 million in growing and profitable companies through management buyouts, recapitalizations, and growth financings. NEP has in excess of $3 billion in capital under management and is currently investing NEP VIII, an $800 million fund. Visit www.nep.com for more information on NEP's portfolio and investment team.
Source: Business Wire (Business Wire India)