Funds advised by private equity firm BC Partners and Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) are to acquire a majority stake in Keter Group – a producer of resin consumer products – from its founders, the Sagol family.
The transaction, which is subject to customary approvals and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2016, will see the Sagol family retain a minority stake and reinvest alongside BC Partners.
Headquartered in Israel, Keter designs, engineers, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer goods worldwide across multiple categories, such as indoor and outdoor furniture, home accessories, hardware products. These are sold globally through a distribution network of over 25,000 retail outlets.
Keter is known for its in-house design capabilities, with 50 per cent of revenues coming from products launched over the past three years.
The company was founded in 1948 and has been transformed by the Sagol family from a small workshop in Jaffa into a company with 18 factories across nine countries and over 4,000 employees.
Sami Sagol, founder of the Keter group, says: "We are delighted to have reached this agreement. Our partnership with BC Partners will enable us to accelerate the development of Keter and we look forward to working with BC Partners on this new chapter of Keter's journey. BC Partners has a distinguished track record of developing family-owned businesses and helping them realise their full potential. They share the same vision for the company and are committed to promote Keter's differentiated culture and core values."
Jean-Baptiste Wautier, managing partner at BC Partners, says: "Keter is a thriving, innovative and fast growing market leader, with highly distinctive competitive strengths and a strong corporate culture. We are highly enthusiastic about Keter's development opportunities and we look forward to pursuing Sami Sagol's ambitious growth strategy, fuelled by investments in sales and marketing, product innovation, operational excellence and selective acquisitions."
Guthrie Stewart, senior vice president, global head of private investments, PSP Investments says: "Our investment in Keter is another example of our private equity strategy to invest in innovative companies with attractive growth prospects, alongside select partners that provide sector expertise and geographic diversity. Sami and Itzhak Sagol have built Keter into a global leader and we look forward to collaborating with BC Partners, the Sagol family and Keter's leadership to supporting the company through the next stage of its global growth."
Rothschild, White & Case and EY acted as advisers to the Sagol family. UBS and JP Morgan served as M&A advisers, Linklaters as legal advisers and EY as accounting and tax advisers to BC Partners and PSP Investments.
