The Asia-Pacific region could see its biggest private-equity backed sale in years, if the ship comes in for KKR’s smart shipping container company Goodpack.
Citing sources who were unnamed because they were not authorized to speak to press, Reuters reported that KKR has tapped “more than a dozen” possible buyers for Singapore-based Goodpack, which makes patented intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) for the safe shipping of rubber, food and automotive components.
The shortlist of reported potential suitors includes Hong Kong’s largest publicly listed infrastructure company CK Infrastructure Holdings Ltd, part of the sprawling business empire of Sir Li Ka-Shing, Hong Kong’s wealthiest man.
Private market investment firms tipped for possible involvement in a sale include Blackstone, Sweden’s EQT, Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA), and New York-based Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners.
It is believed that a selling price could top $2 billion. According to Reuters’ sources, indicative bids are expected by early December.
Challenging payloads
Founded in 1990, Goodpack began as a maker of containers to transport synthetic and natural rubber, before expanding into contamination-free shipping solutions for food and beverages, and later automotive and manufacturing components. After listing in 2000 on the Singapore Stock Exchange, Goodpack was acquired in 2014 by KKR in a $1.1 billion take-private transaction.
Per the company’s own promotional materials, Goodpack’s value proposition is cost savings through better packaging, a line item that traditionally accounts for 8% of total shipping costs. Goodpack claims that its patented, reusable boxes, designed for space-efficient stacking and easy knock-down, can trim shipping costs by up to 40%. The design of the boxes also eliminates the need for wooden pallets, 850 million of which are produced each year.
The company has grown rapidly in the interim. There are presently 3.2 million Goodpack boxes in use across 80 countries and nearly 5,000 points of delivery and collection worldwide.
Private company data provider Owler has estimated the firm’s annual revenue at $51.2 million.
Possibly not just about the boxes
An eventual acquirer may be looking not just for a sustainable packaging play, but access to data intelligence on the growing and lucrative market for global supply chain logistics.
Goodpack’s boxes are equipped with continuous RFID tracking, which allows the company to acquire data on payload origins, shipment tracking, and identify reverse logistics opportunities.
The firm’s current CEO, Eric Grégoire, who previously led EMEA region food and consumer packaging solutions for European packager Coveris said in a 2018 interview: “We want to be seen as a true [supply chain] partner instead of just a supplier of packaging material,” adding that the
company was looking to break into the Chinese market, in particular.