PMCF advises Reliance Products LP in its sale transaction to The Bodtker Group of Companies

P&M Corporate Finance (PMCF) is pleased to announce that it served as the exclusive financial advisor to Reliance Products LP (Reliance), of Winnipeg, Canada. The buyer was Calgary, Canada-based The Bodtker Group of Companies (Bodtker). Bodtker’s holdings include packaging supply leader Great Western Container, a complementary business to Reliance, and is supported via investment from Fulcrum Capital Partners. The acquisition is expected to offer increased scale, financial strength, and complementary products while strengthening Bodtker’s position in the custom packaging industry in North America.

Reliance manufactures blow molded and injection molded products suited for both industrial and consumer customers. Reliance’s industrial products line provides product packaging such as rigid bottles, tightheads, flexible containers, and openhead pails to meet a diverse range of customer needs. They are the only Canadian company that uses the Airopak® in-line fluorination process to treat bottles and containers for greatly improved barrier properties. On the consumer side, a number of products for camping and outdoor living are manufactured under the Reliance name. Many of these products have equally important applications in emergency preparation and disaster relief, such as hydration, sanitation, and organization.

Commenting on the transaction, Charles Schiele, CEO of Reliance, noted “The Reliance team shares the excitement in moving forward as part of The Bodtker Group. This alliance will bring our customers a larger, more talented resource base and dramatically increases our footprint in Canada including a Western Canadian manufacturing facility. Additionally, we will enjoy a much broader product offering including large drums and bulk container expertise.”

Reliance’s shareholders selected PMCF’s Plastics & Packaging Group, led by John Hart, to conduct a sale process for the company. Commenting on the transaction, Schiele noted “PMCF found us an outstanding partner in The Bodtker Group.  They are clearly experts in the plastic packaging industry as evidenced by their positioning of the company, identification of prospective buyers, and management of every aspect of the transaction process.  We were very pleased with PMCF’s performance on this transaction.”

PMCF facilitated discussions and negotiations with a range of potential strategic and financial parties in a process that ultimately resulted in a successful transaction with Bodtker, which closed in early 2013.