Tekni-Plex has signed a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Grupo Phoenix in a deal that will bolster Tekni-Plex’s ability to deliver market-focused, customer-driven packaging solutions, especially in food and beverage markets.

The deal combines Tekni-Plex’s 50-year reputation for operational excellence with the consumer-oriented innovation delivered by Grupo Phoenix, supporting and enhancing Tekni-Plex’s vision to deploy world-class expertise in the formulation, processing, and manufacturing of materials-based solutions to enhance end user experiences, protect products and brands, and promote sustainable business decisions.

“Grupo Phoenix adds a broad suite of capabilities to our Consumer Products business,” said Brenda Chamulak, recently elevated President and CEO at Tekni-Plex. “The acquisition enhances our ability to keep food fresher and longer with sustainable packaging solutions. We are excited to welcome Grupo Phoenix and its innovative products and people to the Tekni-Plex family.”

Grupo Phoenix manufactures rigid packaging and specializes in innovative and sustainable custom packaging solutions with capabilities in the United States, Colombia and Mexico and customers in over 30 countries. “We are thrilled to join Tekni-Plex. This deal will allow Grupo Phoenix and our team to continue to grow with our customers. I am especially very proud of our team and excited for the opportunities this will bring. Combining Grupo Phoenix’s entrepreneurial and innovation spirit with Tekni-Plex’s global footprint and resources is designed to create a first-class scalable platform for continuous growth,” said Alberto Peisach, CEO of Grupo Phoenix.

Grupo Phoenix serves as a strategic packaging partner to leading FMCG brands across multiple categories and segments such as dairy, desserts, coffee, beverages, ice cream, soups, spreads, cosmetics and household cleaning, serving over 20 vertical markets. “We started in Colombia and expanded throughout Latin America; then with the unwavering support of our partners, JP Morgan and OEP, who believed in a small family company, we entered the United States market. Our focused business strategy has allowed us to identify consumer trends early and respond quickly to the market,” completed Peisach.

“This acquisition plays to strengths of Dolco, Tri-Seal and Action Technologies business units by expanding the range of solutions we offer our customers, leveraging a broader range of materials for sustainability and approaching challenges with a consumer-driven mindset,” said Eldon Schaffer, CEO of Tekni-Plex Consumer Products Division. “This deal also allows us to leverage Grupo’s footprint in Latin America and expand our presence in the region,” completed Mr. Schaffer.

“Grupo Phoenix brings a complementary culture to our organization. We look forward to welcoming them to our team. The people are high energy, extremely competitive and very focused on bringing market-driven ideas with a consumer orientation,” according to Ms. Chamulak.

“We have a great eye for identifying early how consumers shop the perimeter of the store including fruits, vegetables, proteins, dairy products, meats, poultry, fish, as well as the center aisle product, single serve coffee. These will continue to be areas of special emphasis for us,” added Jaime Lederman, Chief Operations Officer at Grupo Phoenix. “Finally, Grupo not only has great capabilities in plastics, including PET and PP, but also paper and other sustainable substrates which will be incredibly important to our combined businesses, as we continue our journey to being more material and technology agnostic.”

This is the 15th acquisition that Tekni-Plex has completed over the past five years, supporting its strategy to grow its business though transformative acquisitions and strategic add-ons.

The closing of the acquisition is conditioned upon regulatory approval.

Moelis & Company LLC. and Simpson Thacher served as Grupo Phoenix advisors while Ropes & Gray LLP assisted Tekni-Plex.