Thai Union Makes Strategic Investment in Thammachart Seafood Retail

Thai Union Group PCL. and Thammachart Seafood Retail Co., Ltd. (TSR) today announced that Thai Union has entered into an agreement to acquire a 25.1 per cent stake in TSR for approximately THB 37 million. 

TSR, which currently generates sales in excess of THB 660 million, was incorporated in 2007 and provides professional management services to Thai retailers for their seafood counters, handling fresh and frozen product at 158 locations in Thailand. This includes two food and beverage concepts at eight locations, The Dock Seafood Bar and The Lobster Lab, as well as management of the Ocean Bar. 

The deal is expected to be completed by the end of July 2018.

Julian G. Davies, TSR’s CEO, and Yeeran G. Davies, TSR’s co-founder, will initially remain majority owners and retain operational control. Through options, Thai Union expects to increase its shareholding to 65 percent in 2019.

Thai Union, owner of Thai-leading brands such as SEALECT, Fisho and Qfresh, will be able to leverage TSR’s creative seafood restaurant concepts such as the Dock and kiosk-style concepts such as the Lobster Lab, as well as potentially supply its products to TSR, including its retail segment.

“Thai Union invested in TSR in order to build on its strong retail platform throughout Thailand, particularly in chilled and smoked seafood products associated with Thammachart,” said 

Thiraphong Chansiri, CEO of Thai Union Group. “This investment marks a strategic step to quickly penetrate the retail segment with Thai Union’s recently-launched frozen products under 

our Qfresh brand. Thai Union and TSR believe offering high-quality chilled and frozen seafood products will better serve our customers.

“Further, this investment is in line with Thai Union’s focus in the high-growth market in Asia, including Thailand, where we have seen double-digit growth in our frozen businesses in recent years.”

“I am delighted about this acquisition,” said Davies. "Working together with Thai Union will enable TSR to pursue our ambitious growth strategy and strengthen our foundation across Thailand by increasing our ability to deliver superior value to our customers, employees and relevant stakeholders.”

###

ABOUT THAI UNION GROUP

Thai Union Group PCL is the world’s seafood leader bringing high quality, healthy, tasty and innovative seafood products to customers across the world for more than 40 years. 

Today, Thai Union is regarded as the world’s largest producer of shelf-stable tuna products with annual sales exceeding THB 135 billion (US$ 4.03 billion) and a global workforce of over 49,000 people who are dedicated to pioneering sustainable, innovative seafood products. 

The company’s global brand portfolio includes market-leading international brands such as Chicken of the Sea, John West, Petit Navire, Parmentier, Mareblu, King Oscar, and Rügen Fisch and Thai-leading brands SEALECT, Fisho, Qfresh, Monori, Bellotta and Marvo. 

As a company committed to innovation and globally responsible behavior, Thai Union is proud to be a member of the United Nations Global Compact, and a founding member of the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF). In 2015, Thai Union introduced its SeaChange® sustainability strategy. Thai Union’s on-going work on sustainability issues was recognized by its inclusion in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index Emerging Markets (DJSI) in 2014. In 2017, Thai Union was named to the DJSI for the fourth consecutive year. Thai Union is also part of the FTSE4Good Emerging Index.