Natrium Capital Limited is delighted to announce that it co-advised Wilbur-Ellis Holdings, Inc (“Wilbur Ellis”) on the merger of Connell, its Asian Speciality Chemical Distribution business with Caldic B.V. (“Caldic”), owned by Advent International (“Advent”).
Advent International and Wilbur-Ellis announce the merger of their life sciences and specialty chemicals solutions businesses to form a leading global value-add distribution platform with unique positions in high-growth regions and combined sales of around EUR 3 billion
Ronald Ayles, Managing Partner at Advent International, said: “By bringing together the highly complementary businesses of Caldic and Connell, we will form a truly global business with significant exposure to high-growth regions and very diversified end markets with a high value-add offering. In Wilbur-Ellis, we have found a committed partner who shares our long-term vision of building a fully integrated growth and innovation focused business. We look forward to working together with Wilbur-Ellis and the management teams of both Caldic and Connell in this exciting new chapter which brings synergistic business development opportunities for principals and customers alike.”
John Buckley, Wilbur-Ellis President and Chief Executive Officer, said: “We couldn’t be more excited about the partnership between Connell and Caldic. With Caldic’s strong global position, and Connell’s 125-year presence in Asia-Pacific, the partnership will immediately establish a global, privately-held specialty chemicals and ingredients distribution leader. The combined organization will provide a broad range of solutions for customers.”
In recent years, Caldic has stood out as a rapidly growing, innovation-driven player. The company continuously invests into value-add capabilities and has established itself as a leading player in attractive and high-growth life science end-markets. Caldic’s management team has a track record of acquiring companies and subsequently integrating and accelerating their growth under its ownership.
Alexander Wessels, CEO, Caldic, stated: “We are thrilled that Advent is partnering with Wilbur-Ellis as this will create a unique opportunity to combine two major players, Caldic and Connell, each with a strong family heritage who are supported by a strong private shareholder base with extensive expertise in the sector. Bringing together similar entrepreneurial cultures and complementary geographies reinforces our ambition to establish Caldic as a global growth platform with a significant presence in two high-growth regions, Asia-Pacific and Latin America. This is an exciting moment to join forces as we accelerate our growth and firmly position the business as one of the major global players in our industry.”
Connell’s product portfolio includes specialty chemicals and ingredients for life science segments such as food, pharmaceuticals, and personal care, as well as industrial segments, such as coatings, rubber and lubricants. With a significant presence in Asia-Pacific, Connell’s strengths lie in its world-class network of principals, combined with technical and marketing expertise, and its extensive presence in local segments. These strengths enable Connell to meet customer-specific requirements through customized formulation and marketing support and dedicated, value-added blending capabilities, which it has built out over its 125 years of local presence across the Asia-Pacific region.
Azita Owlia, who will serve as CEO of the combined entities in Asia-Pacific, added: “In terms of value creation, this is a huge win for our customers, suppliers, and employees. We will be stronger than ever and able to bring reach and capabilities to the segments we serve, as well as global growth opportunities for our employees.”
About Natrium Capital Natrium Capital is a corporate finance boutique specialising in the chemical, material, biotechnology, and clean technology industries. Natrium Capital offers high level strategic and M&A (Mergers and Acquisitions) execution advice and has a wealth of experience in investment banking and corporate finance. Natrium Capital advises clients in Europe, North America, Latin America, and Asia, especially India.
Natrium Capital was set up by Alasdair Nisbet in 2012. Find more information at www.natriumcapital.com.
