The private equity outfit teamed up with Mike Teke and Chris Seabrooke to facilitate the transaction.
[Johannesburg, 30 June 2022]: RMB Corvest, an on-balance sheet private equity vehicle of Rand Merchant Bank, has teamed up with Mike Teke and Sabvest Capital CEO Chris Seabrooke to acquire a “significant share” of beverage maker Halewood International SA.
The FirstRand-owned private equity house, the sister company of RMB Ventures, which targets slightly larger assets, partnered Masimong Beverage Holdings — an entity created by Teke and Seabrooke specifically to facilitate the Halewood deal. The RMB Family Office Group, an advisory service for high-net-worth families, and Halewood’s management also committed a portion of capital to facilitate the transaction for which no value was disclosed.
“It’s a significant business,” Brendan Wiebols, an investment executive at RMB Corvest, told Business Day. “The company’s strong revenue growth, and potential for future growth along with new product lines, makes Halewood a perfect fit regarding our investment criteria.”
Halewood manufactures, imports and distributes an array of alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages, including Belgravia Gin, Red Square, Caribbean Twist, and Crabbie’s Alcoholic Ginger Beer. The company’s manufacturing operations are supported by three depots in Durban, Cape Town and Ladysmith, with an additional eight outsourced depots across the country that enable nationwide distribution.
“Our priority was for us to find like-minded investment partners — we found that with RMB Corvest and the Masimong Beverages team,” said Halewood MD Johan Oosthuizen. “We’ve
recently invested capital in automation for our manufacturing processes, which will allow for increased production aligning with our growth strategy.”
