R & R ice cream, makers of brands including Fab lollies, has been sold for a reported £715m to private equity group PAI Partners.
The company, with its headquarters in the North Yorkshire town of Northallerton, also produces produces Nestlé and Skinny Cow products from sites in Leeds, West Yorkshire and Bodmin, Cornwall.
R & R, who announced full sales of around £508m in 2012, are considering closing the Leeds factory but said it hopes to avoid cutting the site’s 135 workforce.
The firm’s main site in Leeming Bar, Northallerton employs about 665 people.
A spokesperson for R & R said: “”We hope to avoid redundancies as there will be job opportunities at Leeming Bar for all staff working at Crossgates, should they choose to take them,” a spokesperson added.”
The buyout is the second British transaction for French private equity firm PAI, who in 2006, bought McVities, Twiglets and Jaffa Cake maker United Biscuits.
Colm O’Sullivan at PAI told The Guardian: “R&R is a market-leading company with a strong portfolio of innovative products and excellent potential to expand in the UK and internationally.
The food and consumer brands sector is a core area of investment focus and expertise for PAI and we are delighted to be investing in R&R. We look forward to working closely with the company’s management and supporting the company’s continued growth.”
