Chinese company takes big mouthful of Weetabix

China Development Bank, Bank of China, Bank of Communications and foreign lenders including Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and HSBC were involved.

"The participation of financial institutions can enhance expectations for the acquisition's success, which can be much more important than just the capital they provide," Zhang Huiming, head of the Enterprise Research Center at Fudan University, told Xinhua News Agency.

Financial institutions provide external risk evaluations, Zhang said, and their diversified judgments make the evaluations more scientific.

The State-owned status of some Chinese food companies and crises in trust among consumers in China also hamper overseas expansion.

Then, following acquisition, ensuring everything runs smoothly in the mix of Chinese and Western cultures is a major concern.

Wang says Bright Food will show trust and respect toward the Weetabix workforce. "We won't lay off employees after the transaction," he says.

Bright Food and Weetabix both have their own ways of doing business, Wang says. "We are faced with some difficulties," he adds. Even so, "we will try our best to accomplish our goals in accordance with our strategy".

Giles Turrell, Weetabix CEO, welcomes the deal. "We are delighted about our partnership with Bright Food," he says. "We are confident that, with Bright Food's support, we will be able to significantly strengthen our market position and expand our business internationally."

The Weetabix brand is based in Northamptonshire, England, and has been manufactured and sold in Britain since 1932.

Lyndon Lea, a partner in Lion Capital, says: "Under Lion's ownership, Weetabix has achieved strong top and bottom-line performance and expanded its share of the UK cereal market. We believe it has tremendous further potential, and Bright is well-positioned to support the company's continued success both abroad and within our core British market."

zhangchunyan@chinadaily.com.cn

 

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