Longtime plastics investor Graham Partners is buying the flexible packaging converting business of Berry Global Group for an undisclosed price.
The deal includes six printing and laminating flexible packaging facilities that had been part of Berry’s North American extrusion, converting and coating business. Graham of Newtown Square, Pa., will combine the Berry business with Advanced Barrier Extrusions (ABX) LLC, its own flexible packaging unit based in Charlotte, N.C.
Graham acquired ABX in 2018. The combined business will operate under the ABX name, officials said in a Dec. 1 news release.
The Berry business being acquired has annual sales of more than $200 million. Graham officials said that the deal allows ABX to expand geographically and add categories such as personal care and health care packaging.
The deal also creates a vertically integrated business with multiple extrusion technologies, printing, laminating, bagging, coating, finishing and niche packaging operations, they added.
Several members of the ABX leadership team previously worked for Evansville, Ind.-based Berry and had oversight of the plants being acquired. Their commercial and operational insights “should jump-start Graham Partners’ value creation initiatives,” officials said.
They added that ABX is benefiting from several consumer trends, including a shift toward convenience, on-the-go lifestyles, increased spending on fresh foods and heightened focus on food safety and sustainability.
“Combined, the strong R&D cultures of these two businesses offer exciting possibilities for the future,” Graham Managing Principal William Timmerman said in the release. “We intend to sustain and accelerate their proven track record of developing innovative new products to better serve customers.”
ABX CEO Larry Goldstein added that he is “looking forward to working again with many familiar faces to achieve future growth and profitability.”
Graham CEO Steven Graham said that the deal “should benefit from our extensive experience building premier packaging businesses, as well as our strong network of contacts within the industry.”
“In particular, we are enthusiastic about having Larry and the ABX team provide renewed strategic direction and leadership to this business,” he added.
Graham Partners has completed more than 130 acquisitions since being founded by Steven Graham in 1988. The firm has raised approximately $3.4 billion since its inception.
Berry Global employs 47,000 worldwide and ranks as one of North America’s largest plastics processors. The firm posted sales of $11.7 billion in its 2020 fiscal year, which ended Sept. 26.
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