Rotterdam, the Netherlands - Refresco Gerber B.V. (the "Company" or "Refresco Gerber"), the leading European bottler of soft drinks and fruit juices for retailers and A-brand owners, today announces its intention to launch an Initial Public Offering (the “Offering”) on Euronext Amsterdam.This announcement is the result of a process initiated last summer to actively explore a new capital structure to support Refresco Gerber’s future growth ambitions.

The envisaged Offering will consist of a primary offering, consisting of newly issued ordinary shares, and a secondary offering, consisting of ordinary shares which are held by the current shareholders. The Offering is envisaged to be made available to institutional and retail investors in the Netherlands and to certain institutional investors in various other jurisdictions. The listing is envisaged to take place in the near future, subject to market conditions. After completion of the envisaged Offering a leverage ratio (defined as Net Debt divided by Adjusted EBITDA) of up to 2.5x is anticipated.


Refresco Gerber Highlights

Refresco Gerber is the leading European bottler of soft drinks and fruit juices for retailers and A-brand owners.
Since inception in 1999, Refresco Gerber has grown organically and through a series of acquisitions from a small Dutch business to a EUR 2 billion revenue pan-European bottler, operating 27 production facilities across nine countries with a total of 159 production lines.
The Company’s principal operations are in Western Europe, where key markets include the Benelux, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Iberia and Italy.
Refresco Gerber’s pan-European manufacturing footprint, global sourcing and local innovation capabilities allow the Company to offer a broad variety of products and packaging, manufactured to individual customer specifications and requirements.
Refresco Gerber has a proven buy-and-build strategy, resulting in steady growth via strategic acquisitions, combined with organic growth.
Since 1999, the Company has acquired and consolidated thirteen companies, including the combination with Gerber Emig in 2013.
Today, the Company reported strong results[1] for the year ended 31 December 2014, with volume up by 18.1% to 6.0 billion litres, revenue up by 28.3% to EUR 2.0 billion and Adjusted EBITDA up by 49.0% to EUR 208.2 million.
[1]NOTE: In a separate press release also published today before the opening of the stock exchange, Refresco Gerber announced its Q4 and FY 2014 results.


Hans Roelofs, CEO of Refresco Gerber commented: “Refresco Gerber is firmly established as the leading European bottler of soft drinks and fruit juices for retailers and A-brand owners. Over the last few months we have been exploring the alternatives that will enable us to best capture the private label and contract manufacturing growth opportunities we see in our industry. Following a comprehensive review of all options, a stock exchange listing providing us full access to equity capital markets has proven to be the most logical step to support us in effectively implementing our strategy going forward.

After many successful years of private equity ownership, Refresco Gerber is now ready for an independent future focused on leadership in the private label and co-packing industry in Europe and beyond. Since inception in 1999, we have completed thirteen mergers and acquisitions, most recently the milestone combination with Gerber Emig which has enabled us to realize significant economies of scale and synergy effects.

Alongside the further consolidation steps, we remain focused on organic growth and in addressing our customers’ continuously changing needs and requirements we see ample opportunities to increase our share of the markets in which we operate. We look forward to the opportunities a listing on Euronext Amsterdam can bring.”


Note: In a separate press release also published today before the opening of the stock exchange, Refresco Gerber announced the intention to launch an Initial Public Offering and listing on Euronext Amsterdam.


Press Release March 3, 2015
Strong operating results, cash flow and synergies realized from the merge

Fourth quarter and full year highlights

lWe recorded an adjusted EBITDA of €48.3 million in Q4 2014, a significant improvement of 59.4% on the same period last year. Full year adjusted EBITDA was €208.2 million compared to €139.7 million in 2013.

lNet profit for the quarter was €4.8 million compared to a net loss of €35.7 million in Q4 2013 and net profit for the full year was €38.7 million compared to a net loss of €28.9 million in 2013. Merger, restructuring and other one-time costs during the quarter totaled €3.8 million in Q4 2014 and €13.6 million in FY 2014.

lNet cash flow from operating activities totaled €12.4 million in Q4 2014 compared to €23.1 million in Q4 2013. Full year net cash flow from operating activities amounted to €156.1 million compared to €70.1 million in 2013.

lA strong cash position of €96.6 million at the end of the year (€85.6 million on December 31, 2013) despite €100.0 million repayment of debt (Revolving Credit Facility) in FY 2014.

lWe recorded a volume of 1,387.1 million litres and revenue of €498.0 million in Q4 2014, an increase of 14.2% and 21.2% respectively compared to the same period last year. The increase in volume and revenue is mainly related to the merger of Refresco and Gerber Emig, which was completed in November 2013. Underlying volume increased by 3.2% for the quarter and declined by 1.0% for the full year.

lGross profit margin per litre increased by 17.7% to 14.9 euro cents in Q4 2014 and by 16.8% to 14.2 euro cents for FY 2014. The improvement was realized by merger synergies, continued focus on more profitable volumes, the shift in product mix arising from the merger and slightly more favourable input costs.