ORIOR AG ORIOR GROUP
PRESS RELEASE
Zürich, 4 September 2018
ORIOR strenghens its food service and European business
ORIOR is acquiring a 35% interest in Casualfood, giving it a strong foothold in a highly specialized niche of the fast-growing food service to-go market. Casualfood is a creative company with proprietary brand concepts that pioneered the introduction of small scale food islands and mobile carts offering fresh prepared quality food to-go for travellers. With this acquisition, ORIOR is realizing its long-envisioned strategic expansion into the highly dynamic food service to-go market in the fresh convenience segment and connecting directly with consumers. Casualfood strengthens ORIOR Group's food service competencies and innovation power and creates new business opportunities.
True to its motto "The taste of travelling", Casualfood's core competency revolves around the customized, location-specific establishment and operation of mobile and stationary grab-and-go food islands with proprietary, innovative brand concepts targeting the travel gastronomy market. Casualfood's offering is uncomplicated and optimally aligned with the latest food trends among travellers on the go: freshly prepared, quality specialties ranging from trendy sandwiches and salads to muesli, smoothies and much more. Being so close to the consumer with a flexible setup allows the multi-concept product offering at individual sites to be quickly and flexibly adapted to fluctuations in foot traffic and consumer needs to suit different requirements. With this unique and pioneering business model, which was honored with the Hamburg Foodservice Award, Casualfood has positioned itself in the middle of the "mobility" mega trend as well as the "Convenience 3.0", "Out of Home" and "Snacking" food trends.
Founded thirteen years ago, Casualfood generates annual revenues of about € 52 million, primarily in its domestic German market, with more than 700 employees and operates 58 food islands, mostly at airports. Casualfood has steadily increased the number of new locations and there is still further growth potential in Germany. Additionally new locations have also been successfully established outside the company's domestic market, for example at Slovenia's Ljubljana Airport in 2016.
Under the terms of the share purchase agreement, ORIOR's interest in Casualfood will be increased in several stages to 100% over the next few years. ORIOR Group will hold a majority interest in Casualfood and fully consolidate its participation from autumn 2019 onwards. The acquisition will be financed with freely available cash and existing lines of credit.
Casualfood will operate as an independent centre of competence within the ORIOR International segment. Its two founders Stefan Weber and Michael Weigel will stay on with the company as shareholders and managing directors. This strategically important new business unit will also be represented in ORIOR Group's top-level management (Management Board) once a controlling interest has been acquired.
CEO Daniel Lutz touts the excellent fit with ORIOR's strategic focus and the Group's optimal positioning for the future: "This acquisition brings us in direct contact with the consumer. That gives us exceptional opportunities to detect and latch on food trends with far more speed and agility than before and then funnel that knowledge into new brand and product concepts. At the same time Casualfood strengthens our competencies in the food service business, expands our presence on the European continent and enhances our innovation power. Casualfood's management team is also a perfect match for ORIOR, given its pioneering spirit, its unconventional hands-on philosophy and profound entrepreneurial mindset."
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