Turenne et al. back MBI for Sopac

The transaction will see Sopac change hands after being owned by its founding family since its creation in 1974. Replacing current head Michel Prouvost will be new managing director Fabrice Beauquesne, the former director of global strategy and head of procurement at German chemical group BASF.

According to Sopac, the packaging manufacturer will benefit from Beauquesne's international profile as it looks to expand outside France.

According to unquote" sources, Turenne Santé provided approximately two thirds of the equity financing, the remaining third coming from A Plus. Neither firm secured a majority stake in the business, the same sources confirmed.

Deal size remains confidential, yet Turenne Santé 1, Turenne Capital's healthcare-focused FCPI fund and the firm's vehicle of choice for the deal, writes cheques in the €3-10m region.

Meanwhile, A Plus Finance financed part of its investment via its Transmission Partenaires fund. The small-cap LBO-focused vehicle has raised €15m in commitments to date and will invest in three or four companies valued in the €10-50m space before the end of Q4, unquote" understands.

According to A Plus, the process was initiated when Sopac's new manager Fabrice Beauquesne got in touch with both the firm and Turenne. The GP was keen on the company's solid position within a niche market with relatively strong entry barriers for potential competitors.

This is A Plus's third transaction to be reported by unquote" in the space of a week. The firm recently acquired a minority stake in French software developer Bimedia during its Omnes Capital-backed MBO and then injected €2m into aviation technology firm Conztanz, alongside Pléiade Venture.

Debt
The transaction was supported by a debt facility arranged by CRCA Brie Picardie, with funds coming from Caisse d'Epargne Ile-de-France as well.

Company
Founded in 1974, Sopac manufactures plastic packaging products for clients within the healthcare and cosmetics industries. Headquartered in Goussainville, the company is understood to have generated €2m in revenues in 2014.

People
Assistant managing director Benoît Pastour and project manager Paul Chamoulaud led the deal on behalf of Turenne Santé, while A Plus's work was coordinated by director of participations Alexandre Villet and project manager Mia Laurenti. Fabrice Beauquesne was appointed as Sopac's managing director following the transaction.

Advisers
Equity – Lamartine, Olivier Renault, Gary Levy Agathe Fraiman (Legal); Oderis, Jean-Albert Bureau (Financial due diligence); Scotto, Tessa Parodi de Schonen, Audrey Troch (Management due diligence); Arkarys, Jean Rias (Corporate finance).

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• Topics
• France
• Buyouts
• Industrials
• France
• Turenne Capital Partenaires