El Segundo, California, U.S.A.-based seafood distribution firm Lee Fish USA is expanding its footprint to the Pacific Northwest by acquiring Dawsco Meat & Seafood, a Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.-based wholesale distributor of pork, beef, poultry, and seafood.
According to a release from investment and banking firm Coldstream Capital Partners, which served as an advisor in the deal, Dawsco has built a customer base across the state of Washington and now has deliveries reaching from Oregon to Canada.
“My family built Dawsco on relationships and always doing the right thing, with our customers, our suppliers, and our people,” Dawsco President and Co-Founder Ken Dawson said. “Lee Fish gets it, and I’m excited for what’s next.”
With the acquisition of Dawsco, Lee Fish moves beyond seafood into multi-protein distribution. The company now plans to invest in expanded product offerings and logistics capabilities, “giving Dawsco’s customers access to Lee Fish’s broader seafood sourcing network while preserving the local, relationship-driven approach that has defined Dawsco’s business,” Coldstream said.
“Dawsco is exactly the kind of business we love representing: a founder-built company with real trust in the marketplace,” Coldstream Managing Director Evan Fisher said. “Lee Fish’s sourcing network and strategic fit made this the right outcome for everyone involved.”
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Lee Fish is an importer and value-added distributor that offers more than 220 farmed and wild-caught products in its portfolio, sourcing seafood through semi-exclusive arrangements with producers in New Zealand, Australia, and Japan.
The acquisition comes after the firm was acquired itself by Dallas Texas, U.S.A.-based Sole Source Capital in 2023 and aligns with goals laid out in that deal.
“With Sole Source, we look forward to expanding our distribution capabilities and customer base as we continue to source the highest-quality, in-demand premium seafood for our customers throughout North America,” Lee Fish President Myles Bowker said in a press release at the time, when he was CEO of the firm.
