Dutch frozen fish import and export firm Seafood Connection has completed a purchase of Weerstand Beheer, a fellow Dutch company trading in fresh and frozen fish products.
Owned by Japanese conglomerate Maruha Nichiro since 2013, Seafood Connection has been a minority shareholder of Weerstand for several years. The deal, closed on Monday, 2 October, establishes Seafood Connection as a 100 percent owner.
Seafood Connection CEO Jan Kaptijn said in a press release the acquisition was designed to give his firm a way to extend its product range and give it a local sales offices in Europe.
“In order to continue our rapid growth path, we needed a strong financial partner. And because Maruha Nichiro did not have a sales network within Europe yet, this was the right strategic move for both,” Seafood Connection CEO Jan Kaptijn said in a press release. “With the acquisition of Weerstand, we gain access to new markets. In Europe, the future of trade in fishery products looks promising and at the same time we see an increasing demand for locally caught fish products such as plaice, sole, and Norwegian lobster. Weerstand already has these products in its assortment.”
In addition, the acquisition fits into the vertical integration strategy of Seafood Connection, Kaptijn said.
“Weerstand has been a longtime production partner but now we can use the plant even better and make it part of our plans,” he said.
As a result of the transaction, Weerstand co-founder Okke Weerstand will resign as the company’s director, and co-founder Simon Weerstand had previously resigned from his director position, Kaptijn said. Weerstand COO Pieter Gerssen and CFO Geert Berkhout will step in for them, but Kaptijn said no other major changes will take place in Weerstand’s operations in the short-term.
“The company is in good shape and we want to continue the current course. It's the people who have to do it and we have 100 percent confidence in the current team of Weerstand,” he said.
According to Kaptijn, Weerstand has developed into a stable and profitable company in recent years, focusing mainly on the production of flatfish from the North Sea, shellfish, and freshwater fish products. Weerstand and Seafood Connection have been cooperating in the joint venture Nephrops since 2012, focusing mainly on the purchase, production, and sale of Norwegian lobster.
