UK-based convenience food group Uniq has agreed to sell its German and Polish businesses to IFR Capital.
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The transaction has been signed for EUR28.5m (US$42.6m) in cash and the assumption of pension liabilities valued at EUR12.3m.
The disposal includes Nadler and PHF in Germany as well as Lisner in Poland. These businesses reported a combined loss of EUR2m last year.
Under the pressure of heavy debts and declining sales, Uniq has looked to sell-off of its European operations in order to focus its efforts on the domestic market. The company sold its French convenience business, Marie, to LDC in September.
Uniq said proceeds from the deal would be used to paydown debt, which stood at GBP2.5m (US$4.1m) after the Marie sale. Uniq said that it also intends to reinvest in the development of its UK business and address its “significant” pension deficit in the UK.
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By GlobalDataUniq CEO Geoff Eaton revealed that the company is also making “good progress” on the sale of its Dutch business, the last of its Northern European operations.
A spokesperson for IFR, an investment vehicle focused on the food industry in continental Europe, told just-food that the deal was part of its strategy to acquire businesses that will offer synergies with its existing portfolio and help drive growth.
“The Uniq businesses fit our investment profile and will contribute to our long-term objective… [of] developing a vertically integrated food business,” the spokesperson said.
IFR hopes to grow its turnover to EUR1.5bn a year. In the six months to end June, sales totalled EUR363m.
This disposal remains subject to the approval of Uniq shareholders and competition authority clearances in Austria, Germany and Poland.
