Candyking International (Sweden) - Dec 2007

unquote
01 December 2007

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Accent Equity 2008 has completed an MBO of Candyking International, a distributor of pick & mix candy, and its subsidiaries, from Fazer Group for around SEK 1bn. EQT also invested in the business and will hold a 16% stake, while management will hold 10% and Accent 74%. It was sold through a competitive auction held by Aventum, a Finnish boutique investment bank. Accent was said to be attracted to the deal due to the company’s market position and strong management. Leading up to the acquisition, the business had been a non-core business unit of the Fazer. Accent believes that Candyking can develop further as a separate unit and continue to expand in a growing market, both in the Nordics and in Europe. Accent has previous experience in the food business through Annas Pepparkakor, a supplier of ginger thins and was acquired in 2005 (September 2005, page 28), and other previous divested businesses like Nordic Bake-Off, Wernerssons Ost and Spira/Swegro. Growth will be secured by taking the pick & mix concept into new geographical markets, organic growth by increasing the product assortment and Accent is also looking to make potential add-ons. This transaction marks the second investment from the Accent Equity 2008 fund and closed at the end of January.

Debt structure

The deal was supported by a senior debt package from Nordea and EQT Expansion Capital I supplied mezzanine loan.

Company

Candyking, which goes under the name Karamellkungen in Sweden, was founded in 1984 under the name Karamellgrossisten in Sweden. The company name was changed to Karamellkungen AB in 1995 and since 1997 it has been part of the Fazer Group. It offers a pick & mix confectionery concept for grocery stores, movie theatres and amusement parks. It is represented in more than 7,000 stores and cinemas. The business has a strong presence in the Nordic countries and the UK. It currently has 800 employees and sales of €150m.

People

Jan Ohlsson, CEO and founding partner, Jan Samuelson, senior partner, Niklas Sloutski, deputy CEO & senior partner, and Jerker Sundström, partner, of Accent Equity Partners, worked on the deal. Ohlsson and Samuelson will take a seat on the board of directors.

Advisers

Equity - Access Partners, (Other Consulting)Equity - KPMG, (Financial Due Diligence)Equity - KPMG, (Commercial Due Diligence)Equity - White & Case, (Legal)

Sourced from: Nordic unquote" 70 (Feb 2008)