Italian industrial bakery group Gruppo Morato has acquired Harry’s Restauration, a company that controls a hamburger bun production plant in Gauchy, northern France.
The plant has been sold by Barilla France, which will remain present in France with four production sites.
The acquisition will provide Morato with the additional production capacity to strengthen and extend its business in the Northern European market, the company said.
The acquisition is in line with Morato's strategic objective of achieving at least 50% of its sales from international markets.
The firm intends to achieve this through consolidation in existing markets and by developing new opportunities in countries with high potential for its target categories.
Harry's Restauration Sales Performance
Harry's Restauration reported 2021 sales of €10.2 million (which was 8.1% higher than the previous year) and the company employs about 40 people in the 3,500 square metre facility.
Annual production is about 11,000 tonnes of bread, meaning that the acquisition will bring Morato's total capacity to 160,000 tonnes per year, across 16 plants and around 60 production lines in Italy, France and Spain.
Financial Support
Gruppo Morato received financial support from Finint SGR Investments, Finest Spa, Banque Publique D'Investissment and Banque CIC to complete the transaction.
In addition, it was advised by Aliante Partners as financial advisor and Chiomenti and Giola for assistance and legal due diligence on the transaction.
Financial and tax due diligence was undertaken by Deloitte Financial Advisory.
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest Supply Chain news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
