Ranjit Boparan invests £5m to acquire large stake in butchers group

Ranjit Boparan, chief executive of Boparan Holdings

Food industry entrepreneur Ranjit Boparan is set to invest more than £5m to become a significant stakeholder in a Yorkshire-based butchers group.

The 2 Sisters Food Group owner is investing £5.1m for a 29.9% stake in Rotherham-based Crawshaw, with a warrant to acquire a further 20.1% of the group.

He is also set to become an advisor to the AIM-listed Crawshaw board.

Also joining the business is experienced business leader Jim McCarthy; the former chief executive of Black Country-based single price retailer Poundland.

Mr McCarthy, who retired from Poundland in September, will join the Crawshaw board as chairman. He succeeds Richard Rose who is retiring after Crawshaw’s AGM.

The investment is set to herald an accelerated opening programme for Crawshaw, with a focus on factory shop locations. The company already serves the Midlands and the North of England.

Ranjit Boparan, chief executive of Boparan Holdings, said: “This is a great opportunity that complements our corporate social responsibility policy and our aim to reduce levels of quality food that would otherwise go to waste.  Our businesses have a significant number of opportunities to work through together in the coming weeks and months.”

2 Sisters Food Group is one of Europe’s largest meat and food producers and Crawshaw said the investment would transform its supply chain operation.

The supply agreement runs for an initial three years and will see Crawshaw acquire fresh meat and other products from 2 Sisters.

It will provide immediate access to increased volumes of ongoing continuity and surplus fresh poultry, which offers further supply surety to complement the scalable spot-market buying model.

Crawshaw customers are expected to benefit from an expanded range at competitive prices.

The terms of the deal are, that subject to approval from Crawshaw shareholders and the Takeover Panel, Invest Co 1, a 100%-controlled vehicle of the Boparan Private Office, and Stephen Henderson, chief financial officer of BPO, will acquire an aggregate of 33,794,490 new shares in the Crawshaw Group.

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