It is considered as the landmark investment in Vietnam’s confectionary industry, with a proposed transaction price of VND 7.846 billion (approximately $370 million)
On November 11th, Kinh Do announced Mondelez International’s investment into its confectionery business with a proposed transaction price of VND7.846 billion (approximately $370 million), corresponding to approximately 80% stake in Kinh Do’s confectionery business. This acquisition is of great significance, marking a new development in Vietnam’s FMCG.
New opportunities
Mr. Tran Kim Thanh, Chairman of Kinh Do, said this agreement and the value of this proposed transaction will be submitted to the Kinh Do Corporation Extraordinary General Meeting scheduled on December 1st. After obtaining approval from shareholders and other state management agencies, Kinh Do will conduct necessary procedures for the deal to be succeeded. The expected completion time is in mid second quarter of 2015. . Prior to the investment by Mondelez International, Kinh Do Corporation will complete its previously announced restructuring to consolidate its snack division (except for the Kido ice cream and dairy division and its retail bakeries)- into one business entity- BKD. This investment will open up new opportunities for Kinh Do and for its staff, business partners and consumers.
Cooperation handshake for mutual development between Mondelez International and Kinh Do
“Our significant investment in Kinh Do and Vietnam is a perfect fit for our growth strategy in Asia Pacific, strengthening our core snacking categories in a high-growth dynamic market”- said Tim Cofer, Executive Vice President and President, Asia - Pacific, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa for Mondelez International. The deal is also expected to supplement resources for Kinh Do’s well-loved brands, include COSY, SOLITE and AFC for Vietnamese consumers and for next generation, while preserving all the elite which Kinh Do has built and developed over the past two decades. Mondelez International wants to seize this opportunity to introduce to the Vietnam market its most popular brands in the company’s global product portfolio.
Attractive strategy to investment
Not only being in partnership with Mondelez International - one of the world’s pre-eminent makers of snacks with famous brands of Oreo cookies, Cadbury chocolate and Ritz crackers; earlier, Kinh Do had broad experiences in choosing partners in its resounding M&A affairs, notably the acquisition of Wall ice cream from Unilever, partnership with Cadbury and a strategic partnership with Ezaki Glico from Japan , etc Kinh Do is among one of first private companies to be listed in the stock market and has been successful to attract investors, paving the way for a transparent financial tool and professional management for sustainable development. This is considered a wise approach by a private company, not merely by seeking for funding and experiences in the market, but also bringing value and better choice for consumers.
Regarding the 10-year plan, Tran Kim Thanh said Kinh Do will continue to develop multidisciplinary businesses and focus on large-scale industries and essential goods. Kinh Do will be heading for vegetable oil, noodle and coffee and select strategic partners for development in each respective field, making Kinh Do brand strike further in the market.
Article and photo by Nguyen Minh - Nguoi Lao Dong