French private equity firm Activa Capital has appointed Xavier Govare, former president of Labeyrie Fine Foods, as chairman of the company’s industrial committee.
He succeeds Philippe du Mesnil, former president of Ceva Santé Animale.
Du Mesnil will remain fully active on the industrial committee, of which he has been a productive member for more than 14 years.
The industrial committee is composed of 15 renowned industry experts who support the Activa Capital team in the study of investment opportunities and the monitoring of portfolio companies.
“Having had the pleasure of serving as president of Activa’s industrial committee for seven years, I’m happy to welcome Xavier Govare as my successor,” says du Mesnil. “What distinguishes Activa Capital is the concrete support the firm brings to the management of small and medium sized companies so that they can grow and become European or world leaders in their sectors. In this sense Xavier’s experience will be of great value.”
“I’m pleased to join Activa in order to help high-potential companies, including those in the food industry,” adds Govare. “I firmly believe in the growth potential of France’s innovative SMEs, in terms of product or brand, and of Activa’s ability to discover new companies and to help them become success stories in the years to come, just as the firm did with Materne/Mont Blanc, Pronatura, and Alliance Etiquettes.”
“We are delighted to welcome Xavier Govare as chairman of our industrial committee to succeed Philippe du Mesnil,” adds Charles Diehl, partner at Activa Capital. “Both Xavier and Philippe carried out successive LBOs at their respective companies that translated into strong organic growth first in France and then internationally through a number of build-ups. Under Xavier’s chairmanship, Labeyrie’s revenue grew by a factor of 36 from 1989 to 2016, thanks to a strong organic growth and twelve acquisitions. Today a full 45 per cent of the company’s revenue comes from outside France. We will benefit greatly from his experience as we continue to discover and accompany talented new entrepreneurs on their path to becoming SMEs with an international presence.”
