Header Foodpartners International Cae Brighter | Sofindev

Foodpartners
International

Business partners
Family Claes, Rolf, Dansette e-and management
Equity stake
58%
Entry
2018/2022
Website
Kruiden specerijen sfeer | Sofindev

Foodpartners International is an international wholesaler for the food industry, which was created in February 2022 by the merger of the Belgian family business Group Claes with the Dutch family business Weidelco and the French company Dumortier. Both Group Claes (via Claes Distribution) and Weidelco are leading players in their respective markets, Belgium and the Netherlands, as distributors of butcher supplies, such as packaging, spices, detergents, nets, artificial casings and equipment, for the food industry.

Through Claes Machines, Group Claes is also the largest supplier of high-quality machines for the food processing sector in Belgium, with an extensive service team for installations, repairs and maintenance. Both Group Claes and Weidelco give their customers extra added value thanks to their experience in developing new concepts and formulas, in addition to stock-keeping, a complete product range and logistics services.

They also offer support on topics which are important to their clients and where they can specifically bring expertise to their clients on their range, efficiency, hygiene and promotion of their business.

Claes 8 | Sofindev
BBQ sfeer 15 LOW | Sofindev

Dumortier is a regional distributor of supplies and equipment for the food sector, with two branches in the northern French region of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, in Roncq and Arras. Dumortier's activities and offering are very similar to those of Group Claes and Weidelco. The history and family background of Dumortier, Group Claes and Weidelco are also similar.

The former family owners and managers are all still active in the management of their company and are all shareholders of Foodpartners International. At the time of the merger, the combined group has more than 340 employees, is active in 3 countries from 8 locations, 4 in the Netherlands (Leeuwarden, Tilburg, Sittard and Zwolle), 2 in Belgium (Beringen and Wommelgem) and 2 in France (Arras and Roncq) and achieved more than 150 MEUR turnover in 2021.

Our contribution

In 2018, Sofindev entered into a partnership with the Claes family and the management of the group by acquiring a majority stake in Group Claes alongside the Claes family. With the support of Sofindev, Group Claes has succeeded in further developing its market leadership in the Belgian market, organically and through the acquisition of Brabopak, and has realized its international ambitions towards the Netherlands and France.

Under the impulse of Sofindev, Foodpartners International was created in 2022 as the combined group including Group Claes, Weidelco and Dumortier.

Group Claes 1 | Sofindev

“The interaction with Sofindev is excellent. Formal contacts on the board of directors are limited, but in addition, there are regular interim contacts in which Sofindev shares knowledge and expertise that are hugely valuable to us... With the right foreknowledge, we should have done this 10 years earlier.”

Ronny Claes
CEO Group Claes

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