IK Investment Partners to enter into exclusive negotiations with Equistone for the acquisition of Bretèche Industrie

IK Investment Partners (“IK”), a leading Pan-European private equity firm, is pleased to announce that the IK VIII Fund (“the Fund”) has entered into exclusive negotiations with Equistone Partners Europe (“Equistone”) and the management team to acquire a majority stake in Bretèche Industrie Group (“Bretèche” or “the Group”), a global leading manufacturer of industrial equipment for the production of food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic products. The management team will reinvest alongside the Fund. Financial terms of the transaction are not disclosed and the completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

Bretèche consists of six leading companies within their respective markets, designing, engineering manufacturing, and installing equipment for food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical production lines. The Group employs nearly 1,000 people and generated a turnover of approximately 220 million euros in 2016.

“We are very pleased to welcome the Fund, advised by IK Investment Partners, as our new majority shareholder. Together we will continue to pursue our strategy of technological innovation, commercial development, and selective acquisitions,” said Didier Soumet, CEO of Bretèche.

Arnaud Thomas, Partner at Equistone Partners Europe, said:
“We are proud of our active support for the teams at Bretèche, both to develop original business lines and to pursue its international external growth strategy, particularly with the acquisition last summer of Shick in the field of dosing equipment in the United States.”

“Bretèche possesses all the characteristics we look for in an investment: a leading market position, a proven track record of commercial success, and an experienced management team. We aim to actively support the management team in their strategy of international growth and innovation, while simultaneously pursuing targeted acquisition opportunities,” added Rémi Buttiaux, Partner at IK and advisor to the IK VIII Fund.

Parties involved

IK Investment Partners: Rémi Buttiaux, Dan Soudry, Vincent Elriz, Guillaume Veber, Mirko Jablonsky, Alexander Dokters, Daniel-Vito Günther 
Buyer Financial advisor: BNP Paribas (Marc Walbaum, Sylvina Mayer)
Buyer Strategic DD: LEK (Serge Hovsepian, Maxime Julian)
Buyer Financial DD: Ernst & Young (Laurent Majubert, Eric Roussel)
Buyer Legal advisor: Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP (Eduardo Fernandez, Grégory de Saxcé, Paul Lombard)

Equistone Partners Europe: Guillaume Jacqueau, Arnaud Thomas, Grégoire Schlumberger
Seller Financial Advisor: Lazard (Nicolas Constant, Jean-Philippe Bescond, François Guichot-Pérère)
Seller Strategic DD: Arthur D. Little (Vincent Bamberger)
Seller Financial DD: Eight Advisory (Stéphane Vanbergue)
Seller Environment advisor: ERM (Julie de Valence)
Seller Legal advisor: Paul Hastings (Olivier Deren, Sébastien Crepy)

For further questions, please contact:

Bretèche
Didier Soumet, CEO
Phone: +33 2 40 73 70 73

IK Investment Partners
Rémi Buttiaux, Partner
Phone: +33 1 44 43 06 60

Mikaela Hedborg
Director Communications & ESG
Phone: +44 77 87 573 566
mikaela.hedborg@ikinvest.com

Equistone
Marie Le Goff Plichon
Kablé Communication
Tel.: +33 7 87 96 12 74
marie.legoff@kable-communication.com