OMERS Private Equity (OPE), the private equity arm of OMERS, one of Canada’s largest pension funds, completed the sale of its portfolio company, Give & Go Prepared Foods Corp. (Give & Go), to an affiliate of US private-equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. (THL). The financial terms were undisclosed.
OPE acquired Give & Go in 2007 and, while owning Give & Go, helped the company more than double its US sales, gain market share, and complete two strategic acquisitions.
Founded in 1989, Give & Go is a market leader in the North American bakery industry delivering branded and private label programs across a range of consumer segments including Mini-Treats, Cupcakes, and Better For You Snacking. Give and Go’s well-known offerings include its bestselling two-bite and Kimberley’s Bakeshoppe brands.
THL is one of the world’s oldest and most experienced private-equity firms. The firm invests in growth-oriented businesses across three broad sectors: consumer and healthcare, media and information services, and business and financial services.
Since its founding in 1974, THL has raised over $20 billion of equity capital and invested in more than 130 businesses with an aggregate purchase price of more than $150 billion.
OPE was represented in-house by Chantal Thibault, Managing Director, Legal, and assisted in Canada by Goodmans LLP with a team that included Neil Sheehy, Kirk Rauliuk and Jamie Habert (corporate), Alan Bowman and Kabir Jamal (tax), Jean Anderson (banking & finance), Amalia Berg (IP), Ken Herlin (real estate leasing), Michael Koch and Richard Annan (Investment Canada Act & competition) and Kate Lyons (environmental); and in the United States by Sidley Austin LLP with a team that included Scott Parel, Starlett Carter and Jason Jones (corporate), and Angela Fontana and Susan Diamond (banking & finance).
The management vendors and optionholders were represented in Canada by Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP with a team that included Cameron Rusaw (corporate) and Chris Anderson (tax), and in the United States by Debevoise & Plimpton LLP with a team led by Jonathan Lewis (executive compensation & employee benefits).
THL was represented in the United States by Kirkland & Ellis LLP with a team that included Jon Ballis, Ted Frankel, Cole Parker, Adam Wexner, John Mason Wilkes and Caitlin Powell Gimpel (corporate), Eric Wedel and Rachel Gray (banking & finance), Vincent Thorn and Vivek Ratnam (tax), Andy Barton (executive compensation), and Seth Traxler and Dan Lewis (intellectual property).
THL was represented in Canada by Stikeman Elliott LLP with a team that included Peter Castiel, Allison Jaskolka and Marc-William Carrothers (corporate), Frank Mathieu and Philippe Kattan (tax), Paul Collins and Michael Laskey (Investment Canada Act & competition), Nancy Ramalho (employment), Natasha vandenHoven (benefits), Neil Shapiro and Scott Brasil (real estate), Howard Rosenoff and Scott Perrin (financing), Larry Cobb (environmental), Ryan Sheahan and Justine Johnston (food regulatory) and Jonathan Auerbach (intellectual property).