Unilever has acquired Graze for a reported £150m after fending off interest from FMCG giants such as Pepsi and Kellogg’s.
Unilever has bought Graze from US buyout firm Carlyle, which has owned Graze since 2012.
The private equity firm was reportedly aiming to raise £300m from the sale of the business.
Graze was founded in 2008 as a direct-to-consumer customisable snacking box. The snacking specialist’s products are now also sold in retailers including Sainsbury’s, Boots and Costco.
The acquisition is the latest by Unilever in its bid to bolster its direct-to-consumer division following its acquisition of Dollar Shave Club in 2016.
Graze will join the FMCG group’s staple of brands including Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s.
President of Unilever’s food and refreshment business Nitin Paranjpe said the group would repurpose Graze’s technology for other parts of its ecommerce portfolio.
Graze chief executive Anthony Fletcher said the acquisition was “a transformational moment in Graze’s growth journey.”
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