GPA Global announces the acquisition of Cosfibel Group
GPA Global (“GPA”) today announced the acquisition of Cosfibel Group (“Cosfibel”), one of the leading players in luxury promotional packaging, luxury gifting and merchandising solutions.
Cosfibel and its founder Alain Chevassus are renowned for their work with premium and high-luxury brands. From L’Oréal to Chanel, LVMH to Rémy Martin, and La Durée to Damman, Cosfibel has established itself as one of the world’s most acclaimed luxury packaging and merchandising providers. Based in France, with global service centres in 16 locations, and working across verticals such as beauty and personal care, wine and spirits, and fine foods, Cosfibel boasts an impressive client list of over 70 global brands.
This latest acquisition sees GPA further establish itself as a global leader in luxury packaging and advances GPA’s goal of growing nearshore and onshore manufacturing capabilities. It creates a strong European foothold for GPA through Cosfibel’s key manufacturing facilities in Spain, Portugal and Belgium. This growth in presence is key to GPA’s strategy of helping clients shorten supply chains to increase speed-to-market, de-risk the supply of materials, and reduce carbon emissions.
Adam Melton, CEO of GPA, said: “I’m excited to welcome the Cosfibel team to the GPA family. Cosfibel’s CEO, Marie Sermadiras, is a serial entrepreneur and she has joined GPA’s executive leadership to help further GPA’s expansion in Europe. Our global supply chain and manufacturing capabilities will enable us to better support Cosfibel’s customers and increases our prominence in the beauty and food sector, while furthering our leadership in wine and spirits. Cosfibel has a talented global team and its founder Alain Chevassus will work with us in a senior advisory role.”
Alain Chevassus, Cosfibel’s founder and Chairman, added: “GPA is a great match for Cosfibel. I strongly believe this alliance will create a bright future for both our clients and teams.”
Marie Sermadiras, Cosfibel’s CEO, explained: "I am delighted to join forces with GPA. This alliance is a clear recognition of the fantastic work our teams have put in to grow and transform our business in a successful and sustainable way despite the challenges posed by a global pandemic. GPA and Cosfibel's complementary capabilities, creativity, and excellence in execution will enable us to grow even quicker, accelerate our diversification, and foster the transformation of the pack and gift industry.”
The acquisition of Cosfibel is the second major acquisition by GPA with Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board (“Ontario Teachers’”) as a shareholder, building on the recent acquisition of California-based Jenco Productions, which established a presence for GPA in Mexico and deepened its capabilities in the U.S. Ontario Teachers’ acquired a co-control stake in GPA in September 2022.
Raju Ruparelia, Senior Managing Director, Private Capital, Asia-Pacific at Ontario Teachers’ said: “We are impressed by Cosfibel’s superior design capabilities and strong reputation in its core markets and industry segments. The combination with GPA will further develop Cosfibel’s well-established European customer network as part of GPA’s strong global platform. Ontario Teachers’ is excited to see GPA continue to execute on its growth strategy by acquiring high-quality assets and partnering with strong management teams.”
About GPA Global
GPA Global supports growth by thinking big. Beyond packaging. From design and pack engineering, to supply chain, automation and more, we invest in the capabilities needed to deliver seamless packaging solutions without limits.
Across three continents, 38 sites that are strategically positioned to put leading design & material innovation into the hands of our customers.
With a strong commitment to protecting people and planet we have been focused on the future since day one adding sustainable materials without increasing costs or using automation to improve production whilst reducing waste, caring for the environment is an investment in the future, and lives at the heart of our business.
Co-founded by Tom Wang and Adam Melton in 2007, the company is headquartered in North America and employs 3000+ people globally.
About Ontario Teachers’
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board (Ontario Teachers') is a global investor with net assets of $242.5 billion as at June 30, 2022. We invest in more than 50 countries in a broad array of assets including public and private equities, fixed income, credit, commodities, natural resources, infrastructure, real estate, and venture growth to deliver retirement income for 333,000 working members and pensioners.
With offices in Hong Kong, London, Mumbai, San Francisco, Singapore, and Toronto, our more than 400 investment professionals bring deep expertise in industries ranging from agriculture to artificial intelligence. We are a fully funded defined benefit pension plan and have earned an annual total-fund net return of 9.6% since the plan’s founding in 1990. At Ontario Teachers’, we don’t just invest to make a return, we invest to shape a better future for the teachers we serve, the businesses we back, and the world we live in. For more information, visit otpp.com and follow us on Twitter @OtppInfo.
Cosfibel Group
Cosfibel is a European leader in the packaging and luxury gift industry with a team of over 200 experts worldwide.
With a host of multi-materials for packaging, textiles, and eco-responsible products, Cosfibel combines environmental requirements with luxury standards for secondary packaging in the form of cases and boxes, luxury bags, and a range of accessories.
Alain Chevassus founded Cosfibel in 2001 and has been the company’s main shareholder. CEO Marie Sermadiras has operational leadership of the business, supported by Stanislas Peronnet, Deputy Managing Director, and Natali Spasenic, CFO.
Media enquiries
Please contact:
Nick Hurd, Chief Marketing Officer, GPA Global: nick.h@gpaglobal.net
Samantha Andrews, Global Marketing Director, GPA Global: Samantha.a@gpaglobal.net
Dan Madge, Director, External Communications, Ontario Teachers: dan_madge@otpp.com