Croatia's Atlantic Grupa on Tuesday submitted a binding offer for the purchase of Strauss Adriatic, which Strauss Grupa officially accepted, valuing the Serbian company, known for its Doncafe and C coffee brands, at €40.5 million.

As reported by Atlantic Group, the conclusion of this transaction requires prior approval of Serbia’s Commission for the Protection of Competition.

The binding offer, as stated in a press release, is based on the total value of the transaction (“enterprise value”) in the amount of €40.5 million, without debt and cash, and assuming the regular level of normalized net working capital on the day of the transaction.

Strauss is known for its strong coffee brands on the Serbian market – Doncafe and C coffee, which would join the regional leaders Grand kafa and Barcaffe through the acquisition. In addition, Atlantic would take over a modern production facility in the Simanovci industrial zone near Belgrade and 220 employees.

“Atlantic Grupa is the largest producer of coffee in the region of Southeast Europe and a leader in the development of the category, and this acquisition is completely in line with the strategic determination to strengthen our core business. Upon approval by the Commission, it will be my pleasure to welcome Doncafe, C coffee and colleagues which together with them enter our system. I am extremely pleased with the prospect of joint growth and development,” said Atlantic Grupa’s vice president for the strategic areas of Coffee and Sweet and Savory, Mate Stetic.

The general director of Strauss Adriatic, Sinisa Danicic, is satisfied that they have found a strategic partner that will develop their existing business in Serbia. “We are proud of the results we have achieved so far as a company, and we are confident that, upon approval by the regulatory authorities, Atlantic Grupa will continue to successfully develop integrated coffee operations on the Serbian market,” concluded Danicic.

Atlantic Grupa intends to invest significantly in the development of the coffee business, both in the production and development of technology and brands, their product portfolio and communication, in the retail and HoReCa segments, the press release further points out.

It is also states that the development of key product categories (coffee, chocolate and sweet and salty snacks, delicatessen spreads and soft drinks), organically and through the acquisition of strong brands in these categories, is the basis of the company’s development strategy.