Baker Tilly Berk CF advises Eimskip - Jac. Meisner deal
Global shipping company Eimskip has recently acquired Jac. Meisner, a reefer logistics based in the Netherlands. As part of the deal, which was guided by Baker Tilly Berk, twelve employees of Jac. Meisner will join Eimskip.
Eimskip was founded in 1914, making it the oldest, and also the largest shipping company in Iceland. In the early years the firm specialised in shipping transport to and from the island, yet in recent decades it has diversified and expanded into a global shipping player, with a focus on temperature-controlled shipping. Eimskip currently operates with offices in 17 countries worldwide, in addition the firm serves several other markets through an agent network.
In line with its ambition to further grow its European footprint, the Iceland-based firm has decided to poach Jac. Meisner, a reefer logistics company located in the Dutch port of Rotterdam. The firm, established in 1959, specialises in custom brokerage, veterinary & agricultural inspection, receiving and clearing frozen and chilled cargo for import into European countries. Jac. Meisner has twelve employees and an annual turnover of approximately €7.5 million.
“The transaction is a part of Eimskip’s strategy of external growth and will further strengthen the company’s worldwide reefer logistics services,” explains Gylfi Sigfússon, CEO of Eimskip. For Jac. Meisner, the integration into the larger player will provide it access to new segments within the shipping value chain and the potential to tap into a more global network, acknowledges Dick Weijgertze, Managing Director of Jac. Meisner. “By joining Eimskip’s worldwide forwarding network we can achieve breakthroughs for new added value logistics services to secure the continuing strong position of Jac. Meisner in the port of Rotterdam,” he says.
Eimskip has acquired 100% of the shares of Jac. Meisner and was advised by the Corporate Finance team of Baker Tilly Berk, the Dutch member firm of Baker Tilly International. All 12 employees will transfer to the buyer, with Weijgertze staying on board as the Managing Director.