Cinven acquires majority stake in Italian pet care chain Arcaplanet
As part of the transaction, Cinven and Arcaplanet will jointly acquire Maxi Zoo Italia.
Maxi Zoo Italia is the third largest pet care operator in the Italian market and a subsidiary of Fressnapf Group. The combination of Arcaplanet and Maxi Zoo Italia (together ‘the Arcaplanet Group’) creates one of the leading pet care platforms in Italy, selling food and non-food products in c500 stores across Italy and online.
Headquartered in Italy, Arcaplanet was founded in 1995 by CEO, Michele Foppiani. Its first store opened in Chiavari, Liguria in 1998 and Arcaplanet is now present in 17 regions across Italy.
Arcaplanet was previously acquired by private equity fund Permira in 2016. Since then, Arcaplanet’s revenues and EBITDA respectively grew from €150m and €20m in 2016 to €400m and €65m expected for 2021.
Cinven will work in close strategic partnership with minority partner, Fressnapf Group, to capitalise on the growth opportunity at the Arcaplanet Group alongside management.
Maxim Crewe, Partner and Head of Consumer at Cinven, says: “The combination of Arcaplanet and Maxi Zoo Italia creates a fantastic platform from which to drive growth in the pet care market and we look forward to working with management and Fressnapf to accelerate this opportunity. Cinven’s Consumer team has deep understanding of the pet care sector given Cinven’s investment in Partner in Pet Food, and the mega trends fuelling sector growth such as pet humanisation and product premiumisation and specialisation.”
Eugenio Preve, Partner and Head of Italy at Cinven, adds: “Arcaplanet is a clear market leader in Italy, best positioned to capitalise on the omnichannel market opportunity going forward. This investment fits with Cinven’s focus of investing in Italian champions to support their growth both domestically and internationally.”
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.