Clearlake Capital Group has agreed to acquire BakeMark from Pamplona Capital Management.
BakeMark is a manufacturer and distributor of bakery ingredients and supplies including mixes, fillings, icings, glazes, commodities (eggs, flour, and dairy), frozen products and bakery supplies. The company serves approximately 1,200 suppliers and about 19,000 retail bakery, in-store bakery, wholesale bakery, and foodservice operators, local independent bakeries and national coffeehouses and donut chains across the United States and Canada. Company-owned brands include Westco, Trigal Dorado, Best Brands, BakeSense, BakeQwik, C’est Vivant, and Sprinkelina.
BakeMark has 5 manufacturing facilities, 29 distribution centers, and approximately 1,000 employees. The company, led by CEO Jim Parker, is headquartered near Los Angeles in Pico Rivera, California.
Pamplona acquired the BakeMark business of CSM Bakery Solutions, a portfolio company of Rhône Capital, in August 2017.
“Today marks an exciting new chapter in BakeMark’s history,” said Mr. Parker. “Since acquiring the business in 2017, Pamplona has been a trusted and supportive partner, helping to guide BakeMark’s management team through a successful period of sustained growth. Clearlake’s operational insights and experience in the food and beverage sector will accelerate that growth and support our commitment to deliver the best quality products and services for our customers.”
“It has been an absolute pleasure working with Jim and his team to establish BakeMark as an independent platform and to aggressively grow the business into the clear market leader in the bakery distribution space through both organic initiatives and add-on acquisitions,” said William Pruellage, a co-managing partner at Pamplona. “We wish BakeMark and Clearlake continued success in the next chapter of growth.”
“We are thrilled to partner with BakeMark and support the company in its next stage of accelerated growth,” said José Feliciano, a co-founder and managing partner at Clearlake. “The BakeMark investment is a natural extension of Clearlake’s deep experience investing in both the food & beverage and distribution & logistics ecosystems.
“We believe long-term market tailwinds, including increased focus on supply chain simplification and growing demand for ethnic and specialty bakery products, offer a unique opportunity to invest behind a category leader like BakeMark,” added Arta Tabaee, a managing director at Clearlake. “We are eager to support the management team and bring together all of Clearlake’s available resources to drive value creation, accelerate organic growth, and create an industry consolidation platform.”
Clearlake invests in industrials and energy; software and technology-enabled services; and consumer sectors. The firm was co-founded by Mr. Feliciano and Behdad Eghbali in 2006 and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California with an additional office in Dallas, Texas. In April 2020, Clearlake held a hard cap and oversubscribed final close of its sixth private equity fund, Clearlake Capital Partners VI LP, with more than $7 billion in commitments. Clearlake currently has approximately $39 billion of assets under management.
Pamplona makes direct private equity, fund of hedge funds, and single-manager hedge fund investments. The firm manages over $11 billion in assets across several funds for a variety of clients including public pension funds, international wealth managers, multinational corporations, family offices, and funds of hedge funds. Pamplona was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in London and New York City.
Harris Williams and Houlihan Lokey were the financial advisors to Pamplona, and Credit Suisse advised Clearlake. Credit Suisse is leading the financing for the acquisition along with Deutsche Bank and BMO Capital Markets.
© 2021 Private Equity Professional | July 22, 2021
