Lagfin, the controlling shareholder of spirits company Campari Group, has taken a minority stake in UK private-equity firm Bluegem Capital Partners.
The financial terms of the deal were undisclosed.
Following the deal, Lagfin will "anchor" Bluegem's "upcoming funds, supporting its continued growth in the pan-European private equity market", a joint statement said.
Speaking on the deal, Lagfin said: “Bluegem is a fast-growing pan-European leader in the nexus of private equity investing and consumer staple industries, benefitting from a clear strategic focus and an operational approach grounded in long-term value creation.
"In recognition of the synergies between Lagfin and Bluegem, our new partnership is built on that unifying vision. We believe Bluegem, under Emilio’s leadership, has all the elements and the ambition to scale into a global leader in its sector over the medium-term and we couldn’t be more excited for the path ahead.”
London-based Bluegem holds investments in the foodservice and restaurants sector in Spain through its restaurants business Lateral.
The French burger restaurant chain Big Fernand also sits in its portfolio. The group runs around 40 restaurants in France, as well as locations in London, the UK, the UAE and Hong Kong.
Bluegem is in talks over unnamed food assets in Italy and Spain, Just Drinks understands.
The deal with Lagfin is also expected to grant Bluegem "access to an extensive global network and deep industry expertise", Bluegem said in the statement.
The investment is not expected to affect "the day-to-day management or operations of Bluegem", nor its investment or "decision-making processes".
The same announcement also mentioned that founding partner Emilio Di Spiezo Sardo has stepped into the role of chief executive officer of the investment firm.
He has taken over from founding partner Marco Capello, who will no longer take part in Bluegem's future investments but retains "executive and management responsibilities across Bluegem’s portfolio to date".
Speaking on Lagfin's investment, Bluegem CEO Emilio Di Spiezio Sardo said: "Their deep understanding of consumer staple dynamics and global network within the industry, built over generations, are invaluable assets as we scale our platform."
He added both Bluegem and Lagfin "share the vision" that investment in B2B consumer staples is key to providing industries, including food, “resilience and growth", with these industries "representing a natural investment hedge to the disruption that emerging technologies are bringing across several sectors”.
"Production and consumption of food and personal care... can be accelerated by Artificial Intelligence, but not replaced," he said.
