Brazilian-American Private equity firm 3G Capital has closed its first major deal since 2015 by buying a majority stake in Dutch window coverings and architectural products company Hunter Douglas for about $7.1 billion.
Best known for its investments in the food and beverage sector through companies such as Kraft Heinz, 3G Capital will pay €175 per share to buy 75% of Hunter Douglas’ shares, the companies said Friday.
Founded by Henry Sonnenberg in 1919, Hunter Douglas employs 23,000 people worldwide and had sales of $3.5 billion last year. The Sonnenberg family will retain a 25 percent stake in the company.
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The Sonnenbergs had offered €82 per share in May to close the company’s capital, but the proposal failed to get enough support from shareholders.
“3G Capital has a deep respect for Hunter Douglas, his diverse brands’ portfolio, and the Sonnenberg family’s unwavering leadership over three generations,” said Daniel Schwartz, co-managing partner, and Alex Behring, co-founder and co-managing partner of 3G Capital.
Upon closing of the deal, David Sonnenberg will become CEO, succeeding his 87-year-old father, Ralph Sonnenberg.
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João Castro Neves, a senior partner at 3G Capital, is to serve as executive chairman, the statement said. Neves is also a board member of Kraft Heinz.
3G made its name in corporate America by putting together big debt-financed deals followed by cost-cutting.
Its approach, developed by Brazilian billionaire Jorge Paulo Lemann and Brazilian bankers Marcel Herrmann Telles and Carlos Alberto Sicupira, pioneered Budweiser brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev, which helped it become the world’s largest brewer through a series of major mergers.
3G Capital also merged fast-food chains Burger King and Tim Hortons in 2014 in an $11 billion deal.
