Dic 4, 2024 | News
Mexico City, Mexico, December 2, 2024 – Alta Growth Capital (“AGC”) announced that it completed the sale of Pequeño Caesarmex, S.A.P.I. de C.V., (“Pequeño”) to Advanced Capital Group, a private equity group. This sale was AGC’s fifth successful exit in the last 24 months. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Pequeño, headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico, is a leading franchisee of the Little Caesars Pizza chain. Since AGC’s investment in 2014, the Company grew from 19 stores to almost 200 operating in four
countries: Mexico, Dominican Republic, Colombia and Puerto Rico. Pequeño is now the second largest operator of Little Caesars franchises worldwide and the largest outside of the United States.
“Together with management, we exceeded our expectations with this investment,” said Javier Garcia-Teruel, Managing Director at AGC. “The team did a tremendous job in maximizing cash flow towards efficient growth and in successfully introducing the brand in new geographies, allowing the company to expand in number of units at an accelerated pace.”
During AGC’s holding period, driven by unit growth and same store sales increases, revenues grew significantly and headcount grew to over 3,500. This transaction underscores AGC’s ability to identify and scale high-potential businesses while delivering strong returns for its investors.
“Our partnership with Pequeño Caesarmex exemplifies our commitment to fostering growth and operational excellence in companies across Latin America,” said Scott McDonough, Managing Director at AGC. “The Little Caesars model, driven by a strong value proposition, allowed us to have a significant impact in the markets in which we operate by providing high quality pizza at a very reasonable price and creating positive job opportunities in local neighborhoods.” The transaction was facilitated by Rothschild, acting as Mexico financial advisor, Stifel, as U.S. financial advisor, Venable, as U.S. legal counsel, Ontier, as Mexican legal counsel, OSY as Mexican tax advisor and Deloitte as tax advisor in the Dominican Republic.
Jun 25, 2024 | News
Mexico City, Mexico, June 25, 2024 – Alta Growth Capital (“AGC”) announced today their investment in Grupo Corcimex, S.A. de C.V. (“Grupo Corcimex”), a well-established niche textile manufacturer of webbings, ropes, twines, and cords, which is poised to continue benefiting from nearshoring tailwinds. The Company, along with its subsidiaries Facomex, founded in 1949, and Textiles Santa Susana, founded in 1964 by Don Germán Mercado Barroso, is engaged in the manufacturing of high-quality products for the global narrow fabrics and cordages industry.
Adding to the decades of experience of Corcimex under the Mercado family, AGC aims to support institutionalization and expand avenues of growth. Erik Carlberg, Managing Director of AGC, highlighted, “this acquisition aligns with our strategic vision, and we are excited about the potential for Grupo Corcimex to further solidify its market position and achieve sustainable growth through targeted initiatives and operational enhancements.”
Enrique Mercado, former CEO and current board member, emphasized, “In collaboration with AGC, we will focus on achieving the group’s growth, leadership, and consolidation objectives.”
“Grupo Corcimex offers a very efficient platform for clients targeting both domestic and international markets across a variety of industries,” added David Oscos, principal at AGC. “With the growing need for adjacent manufacturing hubs, Mexico is positioned as a clear destination for expanding capacity.”
The investment in Grupo Corcimex represents AGC’s seventh investment from its Fund III.
About Grupo Corcimex
With a legacy of over 70 years, Grupo Corcimex prides itself in being one of Mexico’s leading niche textile manufacturing companies, catering to domestic and international clients through two verticals:
- Textiles Santa Susana – Offers a wide range of products in narrow fabrics, including webbing tapes and knitted and braided cords, serving industries such as bulk bags (agriculture), footwear, clothing, textiles, cargo systems, safety, transportation, retail and construction.
- FACOMEX -– Offers twisted, braided, and plated ropes, and cargo and safety nets for sectors including offshore marine applications, industrial, nautical, retail and sports applications, among others.
Corcimex’s state-of-the-art facilities, commitment to quality and exceptional service, and competitive pricing and reliability have enabled it to establish itself as a market leader in Mexico. The Company was awarded the National Export Award in 2009 and 2019 and holds different certifications such as ISO 9001:2015, OCIMF, Merchant Marine, and Loyd’s Register.
https://corcimex.mx/
Feb 22, 2024 | News
Mexico City, Mexico, February 22, 2024 –
Alta Growth Capital (“AGC”) announced today the completion of the sale of Grupo Industrial Artes Graficas, S.A.P.I. DE C.V. (“AGH”), a labels manufacturer in Mexico with an integrated service offering, to Sigma Q Packaging, S.A. (“SigmaQ”), a leading multi-packaging supplier with over 50 years of expertise. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Established in 1977 in Mexico City by the Hinojosa family, AGH has emerged as a prominent player in the label manufacturing industry, leveraging over six decades of industry expertise. Initially founded as a traditional printing house, the company transitioned to label printing in 1980 and later expanded its operations by inaugurating a facility in Guanajuato in 1989. Over the years, AGH has experienced significant growth, driven by both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions. In 2016, Alta invested in AGH, providing capital and expertise to accelerate the company’s growth trajectory further.
Erik Carlberg, Managing Director of Alta Growth Capital, highlighted, “the results yielded by this investment in AGH show the benefits of company management and shareholders working together to yield exceptional returns. Through the investment period, we worked together in difficult and in promising situations. We expect that the company will continue thriving in partnership with SigmaQ.”
Throughout the investment period, AGH undertook various strategic actions and initiatives, including the appointment of a new CEO, pricing adjustments, process optimizations, and the establishment of a new customer service department. These efforts significantly improved AGH’s overall results, with revenue and EBITDA achieving compounded annual growth rates of 15% and 37%, respectively, throughout the period.
“Working with Alta has been a great experience both for the company and the team,” stated Gerardo Hinojosa Valdés, CEO of AGH. “Through the years they actively contributed at every level of our projects and decision making, with a very strategic involvement and a hands-on attitude. Alta is now a big part of AGH´s history and success.”
“We’re quite satisfied with our increased presence in Mexico and very enthused to begin a long-term partnership with the Hinojosa family,” said Henry Yarhi, Chairman of SigmaQ.
About AGH
AGH is a leading labels manufacturer in Mexico with multinational corporations and AAA national clients such as Nestlé and PepsiCo. Their main products include paper, flexible and shrink sleeve labels. With more than 300 employees, the Company offers an integrated service, including design, production, and delivery.
Feb 21, 2023 | News
Mexico City, Mexico, February 21, 2022 – Lottus Education shareholders have reached an agreement to sell 100% shares of the company to a strategic player.
Lottus Education became a great success story as it rapidly consolidated amongst the largest 5 companies in private higher education in Mexico, both through acquisitions and organic growth. Lottus began as a search fund acquisition of Universidad Tres Culturas (UTC) in 2015, a university with 6 thousand students. Alta invested in 2019 to support the acquisition of ULA, reaching 42 thousand students. In 2021 Lottus completed another two acquisitions, UANE and UTEG, with an additional investment from Alta and the rest of the shareholders. Lottus reached 84 thousand students at the beginning of 2023. Lottus targets university students in the low and middle socioeconomic levels through different study modalities providing a strong value proposition through its five long-standing operating brands.
About Lottus Education
Lottus Education, founded in 2015, is one of the largest higher education platforms in Mexico with ~78k students. It targets low and middle socioeconomic levels through different study modalities providing a strong value proposition for students through five long-standing operating brands:
- Universidad Latinoamericana (“ULA”), a highly recognized, private university in Mexico that targets middle-income undergraduate students and low-income adults looking to complete/expand their education.
- Universidad Tres Culturas (“UTC”) is a Mexican academic institution with 12 campuses and over 20 years of experience promoting the education and the social development of its students through affordable tuitions. With Lottus sponsorship, UTC grew from 6,600 students in 2015 to +30,000 students as of August 2022.
- Colegio Indoamericano (“Indo”), acquired in 2020, is a well-recognized high school located in the north of Mexico City with ~1.1k students and +40 years of experience.
- UTEG: UTEG was founded in 1968 in Guadalajara, it currently has more than 16,000 students and more than 1,200 collaborators. UTEG´s infrastructure includes 9 campuses strategically located in Guadalajara´s metropolitan area.
- UANE: The Universidad Autónoma del Noroeste (“UANE”) was founded in 1974 to meet the needs of people who work and have experience in their field, but do not have a professional title. After 47 years, with +14,000 students and 1,200 collaborators, UANE has positioned itself as the leading institution of Higher Education in Mexico´s northeastern region.
Ago 15, 2022 | News
Mexico City, Mexico, August 15, 2022 – Alta Growth Capital (“AGC”) announced today that they have led the acquisition of 100% of the outstanding shares of QSR TH S.A.P.I de C.V. (“QSR TH”), a well-established quick service restaurant (“QSR”) operator in Mexico with rights to operate the Carl’s Jr brand in the greater Mexico City area. AGC co-invested alongside Eduardo Uribe Mesta, a foodservice executive with over 20 years of experience in the QSR industry in Mexico and Latin America. Mr. Uribe will join the Company as CEO and lead the expansion plan in the coming years.
Headquartered in Mexico City, QSR TH operates 47 Carl’s Jr stores. Carl’s Jr opened its first restaurant in Mexico in 1991, the first franchise outside of the United States. Since then, it has become one of the country’s best-known restaurant chains. As of 2021, CKE (the parent company of Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s) has over 3,000 restaurants in 40+ countries. Alta will work with QSR TH to continue its expansion plan in Mexico City and create new growth opportunities.
Javier Garcia Teruel Avila, Managing Director of Alta Growth Capital, highlighted, “Carl’s Jr is a top global hamburger QSR brand which has grown consistently in Mexico and Latin America. We believe the opportunity has outstanding potential due to its brand recognition, quality food, strong franchise network, and Alta’s previous experience in the QSR sector.”
Eduardo Uribe, investor and new CEO of QSR TH, added: “This is a further step to continue executing the expansion plan for the Carl’s Jr brand in Mexico City. After being in the QSR sector for 20+ years, I am excited to partner with Alta Growth Capital to achieve the full potential of the Carl’s Jr concept.”
This is AGC’s fifth investment from its third fund.
About QSR TH
QSR TH was part of Taco Holding, one of the leading restaurant operators in Mexico. The Company is one the largest Carl’s Jr operators in Mexico and, as of August 2022, operates 47 Carl’s Jr stores and continues to hold the exclusive rights in its territories to develop the brand for the coming years.
Dic 13, 2021 | News
Mexico City, Mexico, December 13, 2021 – Alta Growth Capital (“AGC”) announced today that they have led the acquisition of 100% of the outstanding shares of Interquim, a leading active pharmaceutical ingredients (“APIs”) producer in Mexico. Fondo de Fondos participated as AGC’s co-investor to complete the ticket.
Headquartered in Mexico State, the Company is internationally recognized, particularly in the production of Vitamin B12 derivatives and small-scale APIs and is well-positioned to benefit from the trend in the industry to diversify supply chains, including geographically. Alta will work with the Company to continue its international growth in niche pharmaceutical ingredients, as well as continue serving its existing client base with high quality APIs.
Javier Garcia Teruel Avila, Managing Director of Alta Growth Capital, highlighted, “Interquim has transformed itself into a leading Mexican producer of niche API’s for clients worldwide. The Company’s high-quality standards, reliability, key regulator certifications, and robust R&D capabilities make it an ideal partner for pharmaceutical clients and will support its significant growth perspective.”
Stefano Salmieri, CEO of Interquim, added: “This is a strategically important step in the evolution of the Company. Alta has the track record of working with experienced management teams to institutionalize companies and create value. This partnership with a strong financial investor gives Interquim and its employees the opportunity to continue growing the business and to take full advantage of the market’s potential. I am confident that Alta, together with the current management team, will succeed in implementing the Company’s strategy, aimed at providing superior products and services to its pharmaceutical customers worldwide while consolidating Interquim’s position as a highly reliable manufacturer.”
Interquim was advised by Venser (Venture Advisory Services).
Read more at LAVCA
About Interquim
Established in 1983 in Mexico to contribute to the development of the pharmaceutical industry, Interquim is one of the few API producers in Mexico and Latin America. Interquim is one of the world’s leading independent players in the production of Vitamin B12 derivatives, as well as niche products within the molecules market. Currently, the Company’s team has +120 highly qualified employees that service +100 clients in 31 countries. Its Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) have been certified by several health authorities, both national and international. The Company is committed to innovation and high-quality service standards.
www.interquim.com.mx/
About Alta Growth Capital
Alta Growth Capital manages private equity funds focused on growth equity and buyouts in middle-market companies in Mexico and Latin America. AGC has been operating since 2007 in Latin America and is now investing out of its third fund.
www.agcmexico.com
