Meat processing company Cranswick has purchased Katsouris Brothers for £43.5 million. The London-based producer of Mediterranean food operates from two factories in Wembley, using the trading name Cypressa.
Financial investment
The investment is a heavy one, at a price which clearly reflects Cranswick’s belief in their ability to gain high profits from Katsouris. The announcement came packaged along with the first quarter 2019 financial results for the company, which also told of sales growth of 1.5% in the three months to 30 June.
The purchase was funded from Cranswick’s existing debt facilities, with £7 million dependent on the future performance of the company. Investors will be watching closely as the firm performs over the next 14 months to 30 September 2020.
Cypressa’s range of products includes plenty of traditional Mediterranean goods. These include pasta and nuts, cereals and pulses, cheeses and olives, and oils and dressings. After processing, the firm also distributes the products themselves.
Before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation, the company reported sales of £68 million for the year up to 30 June 2019. Around 250 staff are currently employed at the business, and you can find the best advice on how to find a job and being successful in a recruitment process.
Staff stability expected
The former Managing Director at Katsouris, Costas Constantinou, will be staying in his role as the company comes under the Cranswick umbrella. Louis Constantinou will also remain as the Commercial Director, allowing some stability for staff. You can watch out for future employment opportunities.
“This acquisition strengthens our existing continental products business and broadens our offering in a number of fast-growing, plant based, non-meat product categories,” said Adam Crouch, Chief Executive at Cranswick. “The family behind Katsouris Brothers has created long lasting and sustained relationships with suppliers and the business has a strong customer base. We look forward to building on this and continuing to invest in the facilities and the team, over the years ahead.”
Cranswick also noted that they aim to continue investing in their business across the board, increasing capacity to maintain demand as well as pushing operating efficiency forward. Their current main project is a new poultry processing factory to be built at Eye in Suffolk, which is still going ahead and remains on schedule. This is expected to be the first new UK poultry factory for 30 years.
The company has recently reiterated and underlined their intentions to continue building on eco-friendly initiatives in the next year. They had invested £75 million in this area in 2018 and look set to invest £100 million in 2019.
“We have made a positive start to the year and our capital investment programme, which is building a platform for future growth, remains firmly on track,” said Crouch. “We continue to make pleasing progress on the new Eye poultry facility and our new continental products facility in Bury is now performing strongly and in line with the original business case.”
It’s clear that this company has big plans for the future.
