Wickbold purchase Seven Boys and exceeds Panco

The Wickbold, Brazilian manufacturer of industrialized breads founded by Henry Wickbold and controlled by their descendants, closed deal to acquire competitor Seven Boys, the Japanese Jinko Yonamine, who became a naturalized Brazilian and adopted the name Paul. Fabio Medeiros, President of Wickbold, told PRO Value, real-time information service of Value, that the purchase was made in sight, in cash.
With the acquisition, whose value is kept under wraps, the Wickbold exceeds the Panco and becomes the second placed in the segment of processed breads, behind the Mexican Bimbo Group (owner of brands such as Pullman and Nutrella), according to Euromonitor. Its market share rises to 13.5% to 28.7% with purchase.
Yonamine and his daughter, Iza Yonamine, who commanded the Seven Boys, will leave the business. The brand and the manufacturing and distribution structure will be maintained. "The brand Seven Boys is quite traditional in the market and has a vocation distinct from Wickbold, focusing on white breads and snacks. The brands will be maintained, with different vocations, "said Mann.
The Wickbold saw on Seven Boys a complementarity of the brands and the operation. The Wickbold focuses its operation in the Southeast, especially in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, and has lower participation in Minas Gerais and in the Midwest. The Seven Boys, in turn, has concentrated operation in the South of the country and in the State of Minas Gerais.
The Seven Boys has two factories in Porto Alegre and Belo Horizonte, and nine distribution centers. The Wickbold has four plants, located in Diadema, SP, Hortolândia (SP), São Paulo (SP) and Jacarepaguá (RJ), in addition to 9 units of distribution in the country. Without citing numbers, Mann said he hopes to get some gains in synergy with the Union of the two companies in the areas of production, distribution and logistics. The Wickbold and Seven Boys signed a purchase option agreement last year and the closing of the agreement would depend on the results of a due diligence done on Seven Boys. The Wickbold hired PwC to the diligence and the CWTP Law Office for a legal analysis of the deal.
In the first half of 2015, the industrialized breads market shrank 1.5% by volume of sales, according to Nielsen. The specials (with cereals, for example), representing 20.6% of the market, had growth of 8.1% in the period. The rows of white bread, representing 45.3 percent of the market, had a fall of 0.3%. Arlete Correa, Nielsen's Service Manager, says that the market for breads follows general market trend of consumption, reduction or maintenance of last year's consumption levels.
Industrialized breads industry moved $ 2,62 billion in 2014, with a growth of 26% on the previous year. The volume produced was 12% advance, to 276 million tons. Claudio Zanão, President of the Brazilian Association of cookies, pasta and Processed breads and cakes (Abimapi), says that industrialized breads are present in 76% of households.
The Wickbold was founded 77 years by family Wickbold and was administered by heirs of the founder until 2013, when the company decided to increase the level of professionalism of the business. The company hired Fabio Medeiros as President of the company and also replaced the officers-who were members of the family-by executives of the market. The change on the Board of Directors was completed at the beginning of 2015. The Wickbold is still controlled by the founding family, which now takes part only of its Board of Directors.