Kuwait F&B firm Mezzan looks for acquisitions to sustain growth

Published 17 Nov,2020 via Bloomberg Markets - Kuwait-based food and beverage firm Mezzan Holding Co. is on the lookout for acquisitions to help sustain double-digit growth, according to its chief executive officer.

“We, like everybody else, would be actively on the lookout for the right bolt-on acquisitions,” Garry Walsh told Bloomberg TV in an interview. “We’re obviously more skewed toward manufacturing -- that has been our main driver over the last few years.”

Mezzan, one of the largest FMCG manufacturers and distributors in the Gulf, reported a 12% jump in nine-month profit to 10.3 million dinars ($34 million). The company also operates in Iraq, Jordan and Afghanistan, and its shares have gained 22% this year compared with a 13% drop for the benchmark Kuwait stock index.

“The rate of growth might be a bit slower next year as we see some population drain in the UAE and in Kuwait, and potentially in Qatar and Saudi as well,” said Walsh. But Mezzan is well-positioned to return to pre-Covid rates of growth, he said.

The CEO also said:

• Expat exodus from Kuwait “largely irrelevant” for business and the company should still be able to make good progress
• While there’s been a drop in business in the UAE, “longer term it’s very well positioned. So we’d expect to see that come back, particularly as we go into Expo 2020 at the end of next year, and as the vaccine comes out and we start having more travel opportunities”
• Seeing good growth in Saudi Arabia and Qatar

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