Livingstone sells Chocolates Trapa to Grupo Lacasa

  • May 2013
  • Consumer
  • M&A: Sell-Side
  • Special Situations
  • Spain
  • PRIVATE COMPANY SALE
  • RESTRUCTURING

Consumer sector and Special Situations experts at Livingstone’s Madrid team have completed the sale of the confectionery manufacturing business of Chocolates Trapa to Europraline, a subsidiary of Grupo Lacasa.

With origins dating back to 1891, Chocolates Trapa was established in the monastery of San Isidro de Dueñas near Palencia in Spain to produce high quality chocolate. The company was acquired in 1982 by the Rumasa Group, which adapted and re-launched Trapa’s traditional recipes to meet modern market demand. The group made substantial investments to modernise and enlarge Trapa’s facilities and product range but over-stretched itself and Trapa entered an insolvency process in mid-2011.

Lacasa is a 150 year-old family-owned confectionery group employing 500 people across four production plants and is the leading Spanish chocolate producer. Its product range includes children’s sweets, nougat, toffee and chocolates. In recent years, the Group has grown internationally and now includes operations in Portugal and Argentina.

The liquidator of Trapa appointed Livingstone to deliver an accelerated sale of the company’s business. Livingstone generated high levels of interest from major international confectionery groups; ultimately however, the Lacasa offer was selected by the liquidator as offering the most deliverable solution.

Ximo Villarroya, the Partner at Livingstone Madrid who led the transaction commented: “Livingstone’s insight and global reach in the Food sector combined with a great track record of completing stressed and distressed ‘Special Situations’ transactions to deliver a committed, compatible partner for Trapa and its employees, and a clean result for the liquidator.”


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