Resource Partners acquires majority stake in makeup maker Torf

The deal marks the first buyout from the GP's newest fund, Resource Eastern European Equity Partners II (REEEP II), which launched in 2016 and held a first close on €100m in late-December.

REEEP II will acquire 70% of Torf's shares in the buyout, while CEO Wojciech Piasecki and director general Ryszard Guminski will retain the balance. The duo will also remain in their positions and continue management of the business.

Torf was founded by Polish-American Barbara Piasecka-Johnson, an heir to a Johnson & Johnson co-founder, and professor Stanisławowowi Tołpa. Resource Partners co-founder Małgorzata Bobrowska-Jarząbek told unquote" that the Johnson & Johnson connection had made Torf a well-recognised brand in Poland and that the company had been on Resource Partners' radar for some time, partly as a result of it. Where the family had not been ready to dispose of its controlling stake in the business before, once an exit process was initiated, Resource Partners joined the bidding.

Bobrowska-Jarząbek said the buyout was supported with a conservative all-senior debt package provided by the Polish branch of Santander.

While the company is well-recognised locally in Poland, Bobrowska-Jarząbek said it would be difficult to expand the brand outside the country. As such, Resource Partners will focus on growing the business by producing white-label products for western European brands, while continually supporting Torf's Polish presence.

The deal was the first transaction led by Bobrowska-Jarząbek in her new capacity as partner. She was part of Resource Partners' founding team and had been an investment director before her promotion. Prior to joining Resource Partners, she was an associate at The Carlyle Group.

Company
Headquartered near Wrocław, Torf is a producer of cosmetic products based predominantly on peat extract.

Founded in 1989 as a pharmaceutical company, it produces a range of own-branded products as well as white label (also known as private label) goods.

People
Resource Partners – Małgorzata Bobrowska-Jarząbek (partner).

Advisers
Equity – Squire Patton Boggs (legal); KPT Tax Advisors (tax); PwC (financial due diligence); Environ (environmental due diligence); TS Partners (commercial due diligence).
Company – Weil Gotshal & Manges (legal); Fidea Corporate Finance (corporate finance).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• Consumer
• CEE
• Poland
• Resource Partners Sp. z o.o.
• PwC
• Weil Gotshal & Manges
• Santander