AGRO Merchants Group Expands its LATAM Operation with the Acquisition of Icestar in Santiago, Chile
Atlanta, Georgia (PRWEB) January 14, 2015 -- AGRO Merchants Group, one of the fastest-growing temperature-controlled logistics companies in the world, announces its acquisition of Icestar in Santiago, Chile, together with its financial sponsor Oaktree Capital Management.
Icestar was created by Frigorífico Andino S.A., a group founded in 1999 and acquired by partners Kurt Reichhard and Pedro Lizama in 2000. Mr. Reichhard and Mr. Lizama have transformed Icestar into the leading cold storage company in Chile and will retain an equity position in the company.
“Having AGRO Merchants Group’s strategic vision, operational expertise and global reach, coupled with a financial partner like Oaktree Capital Management are factors that will allow Icestar to significantly accelerate its cold storage expansion,” said Kurt Reichhard, Icestar board president.
“We are going to add new services to our portfolio, improve our work processes, bring new technologies used by AGRO Merchants in other countries, and widen the range of activities we already provide. In short, we will offer new benefits and efficiencies to our customers,” added Pedro Lizama, CEO of Icestar.
Based in Santiago, Icestar has an exceptional strategic location from a logistics point of view, simultaneously close to the main distribution and production centers of the Chilean capital, as well as having direct access to the highway networks of Northern and Southern Chile; to the international highway which leads to Argentina; to Santiago’s international airport; and to the major import/export ports in San Antonio and Valparaiso.
“The acquisition of Icestar is essential to our global logistics network,” said Neal Rider, Partner and CEO of AGRO Merchants Group. “Chile is an important exporter of refrigerated and frozen products to the world, and the integration of this market leader with AGRO Merchants will benefit our United States and European customers, who already conduct significant import/export trade in the region.”
“With this acquisition in Chile, we are taking the second critical step of our expansion in Latin America, which began late last year with our partnership in Brazil’s market leader Comfrio Soluções Logísticas. The acquisition of Icestar now places us among the top 10 temperature controlled logistics companies in the region,” explained David Palfenier, President of AGRO Merchants Group Latin America.
Icestar has built its leadership in Chile by offering the highest-quality services in cold storage, blast freezing, and packaging/labeling. Icestar will now offer logistics solutions and new value-added services, leveraging AGRO's expertise in other markets. “Icestar will have access to all of AGRO Merchants Group’s innovation around the world, which will bring additional benefits to the full range of its customers in Chile - importers, exporters, manufacturers and retailers,” said Palfenier.
AGRO Merchant Group, together with Oaktree Capital Management, has conducted twelve acquisitions globally since the beginning of operations in January 2013.
About AGRO Merchants Group
AGRO Merchants Group is focused on providing innovative cold chain solutions on a global basis by partnering with the highest quality family-operated businesses and creating new, reliable, and integrated trade networks to help its customers grow. The Company is investing in modern assets, industry-leading technologies, and value-added service offerings to ensure the highest quality supply chain management standards in the industry. For additional information, please visit AGRO’s website at http://www.agromerchants.com.
AGRO Merchants Group Press Contact:
U.S.:
Steve Denker
TopRight Partners
950 East Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta Plaza, Suite 2195
Atlanta, GA. 30326
sdenker(at)toprightpartners(dot)com
+1 404 631 6929 x103
Latin America:
Fabiana Macedo
Punto Comunicações Multimeios
478, Ministro Godói Street
Room 11
São Paulo, Brazil 05015-000
fabiana.macedo(at)puntocomm(dot)com(dot)br
+55 (11) 98505-5282
Patrícia Monteiro
patricia.monteiro(at)puntocomm(dot)com(dot)br
+55 (11) 99446-0621
Heloísa Pontes
heloisa.pontes(at)puntocomm(dot)com(dot)br
+55 (11) 99129-2495
Europe:
Bart van de Glind
Benedenboven
Parmentierstraat 9
3772 MS Barneveld
Netherlands
bart(at)benedenboven(dot)nl
+31 (0) 342 411 311
Steve Denker, AGRO Merchants Group, http://www.agromerchants.com, +1 (404) 483-0444, [email protected]
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