Srinivasan Iyer
Private equity group Abraaj today said that it had acquired a stake in the Moroccan chocolate confectionery maker Kool Food – its third investment in the Maghreb country since 2012.
The Casablanca-based Kool Food, founded only four years ago, specialises in chocolate confections, powder drinks and savouries. The company also exports its products to Algeria and Tunisia.
The Dubai-based company, however, did not provide any details about the investment, but said that it would make significants investments in the medium term.
“Kool Food is well-positioned in the Middle East and North Africa region as a successful local producer of quality chocolate confectionery products affordable to the region’s burgeoning consumer classes,” said Tarek Kabil, a partner at Abraaj. “By building out Kool Food’s current product offering with attractive new products and extending its pan-regional distribution, Abraaj will catalyse the company’s growth into one of the leading chocolate confectionery players in the region.”
Abraaj said in a statement that it would use its expertise to expand Kool Aid’s international distribution and introduce new products.
“Partnering with Abraaj will accelerate Kool Food’s growth, building on our hard work over the last four years to develop this company into a leading confectionery brand recognised for making popular chocolate products,” said Anas Lahlou, the founder and chief executive of Kool Food.
Data from market consultants Business Monitor International (BMI) show that per capita food consumption growth in Morocco this year would rise by 1.3 per cent compared with last year.
“We continue to hold a negative shorter-term view on Morocco’s food and drink industry owing to its weak private consumption outlook and the value-added tax and agricultural sector tax increases for food items introduced in 2014. Moroccan households will be further squeezed by increasingly limited credit availability and constrained government spending in 2014,” BMI said.
Earlier this month Reuters reported that Abraaj and TPG Capital were the favourites to acquire a majority stake in Saudi fast-food chain Kudu.
siyer@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter @Ind_Insights
