Seven years ago the idea of selling the company was out of all the plans. Same five years ago. In 2019 that possibility became a “maybe”, and this month it was a “yes”. This changed the position of the Mac-Clure family (owners of San Francisco de Loncomilla) to put the company up for sale.
Last week it was revealed that Carozzi agreed to purchase 100% of the social rights of Lecherías Loncomilla Limitada, parent company of Helados San Francisco, a firm that today has 250 collaborators and more than 80 products.
Talks began last year and the deal has not yet been finalized. In fact, the price of the transaction has not been agreed and the National Economic Prosecutor’s Office has yet to give the go-ahead, which would happen within the next few weeks, says a person familiar with the operation. “There should be no problems, because this action does not affect free competition,” says someone who knew the details of the negotiations.
One of the advisers to the operation was Landmark, corporate finance and M&A advisory firm with offices in Santiago, Buenos Aires, Bogotá and Sao Paulo. The last few months have been behind operations such as the purchase of Walmart from Babytuto, and the acquisition of the Argentine company Wormhole from the Peruvian startup Crehana.
It was in 1975 when Salvador Mac-Clure, his son Francisco Mac-Clure and “El Gringo” Peter Berger decided to develop a dairy in the hills of San Javier de Loncomilla. The first provided the field, the second the knowledge and the third contributed the financial resources.
They began selling fresh milk on the edge of the roads of San Javier, and with the profits they built new pens for the cows. In 1978 they built a small plant to make Chanco cheese, an area that gradually increased the company’s sales. With the recession of 1981 Peter Berger and Salvador Mac-Clure left the business, leaving only Francisco Mac-Clure and his wife Marie-Anne Lyon as sole owners.
In 1992, with the cream left over from their light cheese production, they decided to make butter and ice cream. The latter ended up being their flagship product: they currently offer dozens of options and flavors.
In order to dominate the premium segment, they faced multiple mistakes. And to learn about the ice cream industry, in the 1990s Francisco Mac-Clure participated as a research assistant in the United States. The firm, say knowledgeable sources, emerged as a family company and stuck to that logic. “We see in Carozzi a Chilean company capable of giving continuity to the San Francisco tradition and dynamism to the frozen dessert and premium ice cream market,” Francisco Mac-Clure said in a statement last week.
In fact, many of the children of the Mac-Clure-Lyon couple have worked in the company: Nicolás, for example, is the development manager and was the one who led the negotiations with Carozzi. There is also Marie Anne, who is a confectioner and who was key to the preparation of frozen desserts, especially Suspiro Limeño, which marked a before and after in the industry.
At the beginning of the year Francisco Mac-Clure transferred control of Lecherías Loncomilla Limitada to his children Magdalena, Marie Anne, Nicolás, Sofía, Catalina and Francisco. They were the ones who would have decided to sell the company.
Getting on the podium: what interested Carozzi
The company chaired by businessman Gonzalo Bofill, two years ago he started shopping in the field of ice cream. In 2020 it acquired the Bresler brand. It also obtained all of the assets of Unilever Chile necessary for the production and marketing of said ice cream in the country. The cost of this transaction was approximately US$ 20.8 million and was financed with bank resources.
A source linked to the food company says that the commitment to this new item left Carozzi executives happy. In fact, in 2021 they achieved the distinction for two of their new ice cream flavors: Frac and Frugelé. “(Entering this industry) meant a challenge and learning in all areas,” Bofill wrote in the 2021 corporate report.
But what specifically interested Carozzi from San Francisco de Loncomilla? In the first place, they will seek to climb the ice cream market position (with the purchase of Bresler they were in fourth place, and in 2023 they will seek to enter, at least, the podium).
In addition, this operation will diversify the company’s portfolio, which has a presence in pasta, flour, rice, beverages, cookies, jams, cereals, dog food, among others. They will also put chips in the field of premium ice cream and family desserts, a market that, as discussed in the field, has grown considerably in recent years.
And what comes next for the Mac-Clure? The clan sees this sale as an opportunity to continue to grow and create new products without sacrificing their family heritage. But this, it is heard in the industry, will be seen over time.