China’s Chevalier burns $148m in mashed potato play
How could a company with 23 per cent of Australia’s $625 million potato market go bust?
Experts point to razor thin margins and the enormous power of supermarket giants Woolworths and Coles as a large part of the problem for a business which three years ago was making $36 million in profits when Chinese conglomerate Chevalier Group bought a 70 per cent stake. The transaction valued the business at $212 million, making Chevalier’s investment about $148 million.
What was then known as Moraitis Group was rebadged as Oakville Produce last year, and along with the biggest fresh potato business in Australia, the firm also ran the biggest onion supply operation. But it’s hard to build a brand in the potato market, where the supermarket giants have their own packaged Sydney Morning Herald – Read more…
Experts point to razor thin margins and the enormous power of supermarket giants Woolworths and Coles as a large part of the problem for a business which three years ago was making $36 million in profits when Chinese conglomerate Chevalier Group bought a 70 per cent stake. The transaction valued the business at $212 million, making Chevalier’s investment about $148 million.
What was then known as Moraitis Group was rebadged as Oakville Produce last year, and along with the biggest fresh potato business in Australia, the firm also ran the biggest onion supply operation. But it’s hard to build a brand in the potato market, where the supermarket giants have their own packaged Sydney Morning Herald – Read more…
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