CSM Bakery Products and CSM Ingredients were part of the same company (CSM Bakery Solutions) for many years. In recent years, however, it became increasingly clear that they were completely different entities, with different supply chains, different business models and different target groups and sales markets. Owner Rhône Group (the ultimate owner of CSM Bakery Solutions) therefore decided to carve out CSM Ingredients and sell it. KPMG was asked to assist in preparing the sale, in the actual sale, and in separating the two business operations. Initial exploratory talks on the separation took place in 2019. After a two-year process, CSM Ingredients was finally sold to private equity party Investindustrial in 2021.
How do you separate two parts of a company that are so intertwined? And how do you actually sell a company that does not yet exist?
