ACON Investments Announces Sale of Florimex
WASHINGTON, D.C., February 23, 2005 -- ACON Investments, a Washington, D.C.-based global private equity firm, announced today that it has completed the sale of its controlling stake in Florimex International, B.V. (“Florimex”) to Bencis Capital Partners, a Dutch private equity investment group. Terms of the sale were not disclosed. Based In Aalsmeer, the Netherlands, Florimex is one of the leading marketers and distributors of fresh cut flowers, potted plants and decorative foliage worldwide. ACON acquired Florimex in November, 2001, when it received Bankruptcy Court approval to purchase the International Division of U.S.A. Floral Products, Inc (“USAFP”). The International Division included all of USAFP’s operations outside the United States, which operated largely independent of USAFP’s other operations.
Under ACON’s ownership and direction, Florimex underwent a significant transformation. Initiatives undertaken included relocating headquarters from Germany to the Netherlands, centralizing the Company’s administive offices, refinancing the capital structure assumed in ACON’s original acquisition, turning around several underperforming divisions and reorganizing the management team. As a result of these initiatives and the exceptional leadership provided by Florimex’s management team, ACON was able to more than triple its equity investment in Florimex in a period of 40 months.
ACON Investments is a Washington, D.C.-based private equity investment firm which has managed approximately $725 million of capital. Founded in 1996, ACON manages private equity funds and special purpose partnerships with investments in the United States, Europe and Latin America. Among its activities, ACON is affiliated with Texas Pacific Group, one of the leading private equity organizations in the world. ACON pursues a theme-based investment strategy by focusing on industries or businesses at key inflection points in their development and pursues these opportunities in close partnership with established management teams. ACON has offices in Washington, D.C. and Madrid, Spain.
Contact:
Ken Brotman, ACON Investments, 202-454-1111
Owen Blicksilver, Owen Blicksilver Public Relations, 516-742-5950 |
