L Catterton, global consumer-focused private equity firm, and Ambienta, European private equity fund focused on sustainability, have joined forces to acquire Pibiplast, a design
and manufacturing firm of beauty and personal care plastic packaging solutions, with headquarters in Correggio, Italy. The Bosi family, founder and current owner of Pibiplast, will retain a minority stake. However, the terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Pibiplast, founded in 1954, was among the first in adopting environmental friendly packaging solutions. The company has continued its specialization in the skincare and makeup sectors through strategic acquisitions and investments in state of the art technologies. Currently, the company serves more than 500 customers across 35 countries through its four plants based in Northern Italy. It offers products and customized solutions to the most recognized global brands as well as emerging independent brands.
Cosmetic industry has been a late adopter of eco-friendly packaging solutions; however, Pibiplast was one of the companies transitioning away from highly polluting materials in the 1990s, replacing non-recyclable plastics with bioplastics and recyclable plastics. Pibiplast claims to have a strong edge compared to the market norm in terms of adoption of highly recyclable products.
Together with L Catterton and Ambienta, Pibiplast aims to accelerate its sustainability roadmap through the development and promotion of innovative eco-friendly packaging
solutions, addressing the increasing demand from customers to reduce environmental impact. The collaborative efforts will be directed towards reducing their plastic footprint in cosmetic industry.
Andrea Ottaviano, managing partner of L Catterton Europe, commented,“Sustainability has increasingly become a driver for change in the cosmetics industry and we were drawn to Pibiplast as a leader in eco-friendly packaging solutions. We look forward to working with Ambienta to support the Company’s growth through strong investments in R&D and Capex. We also believe the highly fragmented market offers meaningful opportunities to look for add-on investments to broaden Pibiplast’s product offering and strengthen its international presence.”
Mauro Roversi, chief investment officer at Ambienta, commented, “This is a tremendous opportunity for Ambienta to help Pibiplast capture the growing demand for more sustainable packaging and the exceptional prospects offered by the beauty and personal care sector. Our objective is to position Pibiplast as the undisputed leader in sustainable cosmetic packaging, and we are confident that we can achieve our goals by working together with L Catterton and Pibiplast’s strong management team.”
Giorgio Bosi, CEO of Pibiplast, added, “We are excited to work with our new partners to lead Pibiplast into a new phase of growth and development by expanding our portfolio of products and expanding internationally. Both L Catterton and Ambienta have exemplary track records of building leading brands and we look forward to working with them to realize Pibiplast’s strategic goals while staying true to our mission and core values.”
