The Naturellement Gourmand group, owned by Abenex, announces the acquisition of Les Délices Du Chef, a major player in the production of blinis, pancakes, crêpes and galettes to expand its product range. This acquisition is in line with the NG Group’s development strategy, which aims to create a food group focused on the naturalness and quality of food products with a strong pleasure component. For this operation, the group is supported by Abenex, Arkéa Capital, and the managing directors and sellers of Délices du Chef.
Les Délices du Chef, a major player in the blini, pancake, crêpe and galette market based in Locoal-Mendon, near Vannes (56), employs 50 people and has a turnover of nearly 11 million Euros in France and abroad. The company joins Tartefrais within the Naturellement Gourmand group based in Falaise in Calvados (14). Les Délices du Chef was created 22 years ago by Erwan Le Roux, joined by Sébastien Chanoir and Yannick Le Borgne, also founder of Armor Plats Cuisinés. The Breton company exports more than 30% of its production and addresses the organic supermarkets, the conventional supermarkets, out-of-home catering and BtoB distribution networks.
For Franck Malinowski, head of the Naturellement Gourmand group: “This acquisition is perfectly in line with the strategy of the new group as both companies share the same values of naturalness and product quality. This is an important step because Les Délices du Chef strengthens the new group, in particular thanks to a strong presence in organic channels and also internationally”.
Abenex, majority shareholder of the Naturellement Gourmand group, supports the acquisition by significantly involving the sellers of Les Délices du Chef who become shareholders of the NG group, as well as Arkéa Capital, a subsidiary of the Arkéa group, and the management of both companies.
A senior debt co-arranged by CIC and Arkéa Banque Entreprises et Institutionnels, a subsidiary of the Arkéa group, refinances the Group’s acquisition debt and finances the acquisition of Les Délices du Chef.
The Naturellement Gourmand Group bringing together Tartefrais and Les Délices du Chef is the first investment of the Abenex Croissance fund, a fund dedicated to smallcap transactions, whose launch was announced in December 2018. The fund, which aims to raise €125 million, has completed an initial closing with renowned institutional investors (Ardian, Arkea, CA Indosuez, etc.) and families.
