BrazilRoland Berger advises Norwegians on Dutch pizza deal
New York Pizza has been acquired by Norway’s Orkla, valuing the Dutch pizza chain at nearly €150 million.
With over 230 franchisee operated sales outlets, New York Pizza is the second largest player in the Dutch market. Last year these outlets sold 11.5 million pizza’s, generating more than €54 million in sales.
By joining forces with Orkla, a listed Norwegian supplier of consumer goods, bakery, snacks and personal care products with over 21,000 employees, New York Pizza aims to accelerate its internationalisation strategy. The chain recently entered the Belgian market (New York Pizza plans to have six outlets by the end of the year) and is active with two sales outlets in Cologne, Germany.
“This is an important step forward that will enable us to further scale the business model,” explained Philippe Vorst, CEO of New York Pizza. “We are looking forward to working with them to realise the company’s international growth potential.”
Amstelveen-headquartered New York Pizza has sold 75% of its shares to the Norwegians, with the remaining 25% of shares in the hands of the current shareholders.
The deal was advised on by M&A consultants from several consultancies. Orkla hired Roland Berger to conduct a commercial due diligence on New York Pizza and its growth outlook. Other consulting firms that supported the transaction were Axeco (a Dutch M&A advisory) and Big Four firm Deloitte.
Meanwhile, legal advisory was provided by Houthoff, Florent, Buren, and Maverick Advocaten, while JSA Tax delivered tax advisory work. Both New York Pizza and Orkla also had an inhouse team that contributed to the deal.
Jaan Ivar Semlitsch, President and CEO of Orkla said: “This acquisition is aligned with Orkla’s strategic ambition of growing in the Out-of-Home segment, which has higher growth than the traditional grocery channel. We are delighted with the addition, New York Pizza is a well-run company with a well-functioning franchise model.
The deal includes Euro Pizza Products, a subsidiary of New York Pizza that manufactures pizza dough. This unit supplies New York Pizza with dough and other pizza ingredients and condiments, but also operates a standalone sales business, exporting to customers in 18 European countries.
Orkla-owned Kotipizza is the unit’s largest external customer, and as a result, “we see several opportunities for closer collaboration between New York Pizza and Kotipizza,” said Semlitsch.
