What made Verigreen Packaging an attractive prospect for Alpla?
Gareth: Alpla required a vastly experienced management team with a world-class factory and certified products to expand from Gauteng into the KwaZulu-Natal region. Verigreen provided an attractive entrepreneurial platform as a niche market-focused player with a wealth of industry experience. We are positioned with fully electric technology and an optimised production hub to replicate on-time and in-full delivery on a daily basis to keep meeting customers’ expectations and expand beyond the oil and lubricants sector.
Why sell the business now?
Marco: The mandate from our shareholders was to explore opportunities in terms of taking the business to the next level. As a consequence, we looked at various options. The deal with Alpla worked because it met our shareholders’ return on investment criteria, provided funding capabilities and a technical advantage at an extrusion blow moulding level to dominate our sector and diversify our portfolio more quickly and secured a sustainable future for our staff.
Why not choose a private equity partner instead?
Marco: As a business, we weren’t keen on going down the private equity road because we wanted to partner with people who understood the packaging business and could offer experience and support at all levels. During discussions, it quickly became apparent that Alpla would be a very good owner of the business because the two organisations were aligned at a market level.
The trick to any acquisition is agreement, alignment and navigating the settling in period. We need to see how we can integrate our entrepreneurial flair with the modus operandi of this global packaging giant.
What are the implications for your management team?
Marco: It was hugely important that the team, which has been instrumental in Verigreen’s success, stays on and be integrated into the group. Gareth continues to head up Verigreen and his short-term focus will be on consolidating technologies to diversify the production portfolio and to evaluate other regional opportunities. Nicholas Baglione, Logan Kunniah and Denton Kunniah retain their respective roles as business development manager, factory manager and production manager. I was delighted when Alpla asked me to consider a board position and move into an advisory/strategic role that looks at things from a group perspective.
And your production staff?
Gareth: We spoke extensively about the integration of our people and their future careers and were pleased with the responses as Alpla always requires skilled people for its global operations. I am passionate about people development and would go to war with any of our 25 employees – who have worked their way up the operation and represent a creative, enthusiastic and highly skilled team – that is now eager to grow into a group of Alpla’s magnitude.
The development journey for nine of them has continued since mid-August, with pairs of operators travelling to Alpla’s facility in Kempton Park for week-long training on the new blow moulding equipment, which will be commissioned at our plant and start producing personal care packaging during 2022. They are very excited about this opportunity to learn, the scope to grow and create job opportunities for new operators on the lubricants and personal care packaging side of the business.
What catalyst for growth does Alpla’s technology represent?
Gareth: Oil and lubricants packaging represents a small percentage of the overall market and the group’s exclusive and bespoke technology, which offers a competitive advantage over conventional blow moulding technology, creates scope for expansion into other sectors where Alpla is globally dominant and to include post-consumer recyclate content in the packs.
How do the companies’ views on production waste and recycling compare?
Gareth: Verigreen’s waste management plan is optimised. This closed-loop system means that nothing goes to landfill. We are hopeful that Alpla’s strong stance on advancing sustainability and track record of investing in and establishing a recycling footprint in other markets will help to improve South Africa’s existing infrastructure.
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