ROSEMONT, IL (September 14, 2012)—Reinhart Foodservice, the 5th largest broadline distributor in the US, announced that it has entered an agreement to acquire certain assets of AGAR Supply Co., the nation’s 12th largest foodservice distributor and the largest in New England. The transaction is expected to close September 24, 2012.
AGAR serves 5,000 grocery and restaurant customers across Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and Maine from a 335,000 square foot facility in Taunton, Massachusetts. The company carries 12,000 SKUs, including its own Nautifish® and Bull Pen® brands.
Boyd Jordan, President of Reinhart, said “As Reinhart celebrates its 40th anniversary in the foodservice industry, we are very excited to have AGAR join forces with our existing RFS Boston division to create an even stronger Reinhart in the New England region. We admire the contributions AGAR has made to the New England foodservice industry over the last seventy years. We have known Karen Bressler for a number of years and value her and AGAR’s connections to the New England food service marketplace and the passion she has instilled in her team for helping their customers successfully grow their business. Together, we will be even better suited to serve the growing needs of our combined New England customer base from the Taunton distribution center.”
Karen Bressler, AGAR’s Chief Executive Officer, said, “I am excited to move forward with Reinhart, a family business with an unwavering commitment to customers and employees. We will grow our business in New England through our strong Center of the Plate knowledge, excellent team and a focus on profit solutions for customers. We remain committed to the Retail market, Foodservice and of course our roots in the Asian market. It makes sense for both customers and employees for AGAR to combine with a larger business such as Reinhart to ensure we stay aggressive in the marketplace and access the wide range of products, services, technology, people, and brands to help customers compete and succeed. I look forward to being part of this dynamic leadership and am thrilled to continue to be part of the excellent group of loyal employees and look forward to working with the Reinhart group. The best is yet to come.”
John Roussel, Chief Executive Officer of Reinhart, said “This is a great day for all of us. With our previous acquisitions in New Bedford, MA and Burlington VT, the acquisition of AGAR will reinforce Reinhart’s commitment to New England, a marketplace with a wonderfully diverse culinary heritage. We will certainly gain knowledge and expertise from AGAR’s Retail, Asian and Latino cuisine specialists and believe that with Reinhart’s additional resources AGAR and Reinhart's Boston customers will be sure to get the right products and the right services from Reinhart Boston.”
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