Rancho, Cuccamonga, California-headquartered Aquamar Holdings has acquired Sumner, Washington-based Shining Ocean, the producer of Kanimi brand frozen and refrigerated surimi products made from Alaskan Pollock and Pacific Whiting. The deal, terms of which were not disclosed, transforms Aquamar into the second-largest surimi seafood producer in North America.
“We are excited to add Shining Ocean’s business to our portfolio,” said Aquamar CEO Daryl Gormley. “With this strategic partnership, we significantly expand branded seafood products for our current customers and leverage our investments in innovation and diversification of the raw material supply across a broader footprint.”
Shining Ocean was previously a subsidiary of True World Group, a global conglomerate of seafood manufacturing and distribution enterprises. Established in 1985, the company is a top-five surimi manufacturer in the United States.
“We couldn’t have found a better partner to shepherd our business than the team at Aquamar,” said Robert Bleu, president of True World Group. “The combination of Aquamar and Shining Ocean will greatly benefit our customers, and we wish them nothing but success going forward.”
He added: “Shining Ocean has been a dependable performer for us for 36 years, and we will miss the team members from our group. However, this sale allows us to focus on our core food distribution business and our very successful retail concepts, including plans to launch the biggest Asian Food Hall in America in the coming year.”
The addition of Shining Ocean strengthens Aquamar’s existing surimi lineup, adds additional branded products, and provides new opportunities for innovation in the seafood market. Aquamar has strengthened its position at a time where consumer interest in, and consumption of, seafood remains robust.
“We continue to see growing demand in the seafood manufacturing and branded product spaces,” said James Dickinson, vice president of Detroit, Michigan-headquartered Huron Capital. “We look forward to offering Shining Ocean’s innovative products as we continue to grow the Aquamar platform.”
Founded in Detroit in 1999, Huron Capital is an operationally focused private equity company with a long history of growing lower middle-market enterprises by employing buy-and-build strategies. It has successfully raised six private equity funds aggregating nearly $2.0 billion in committed capital and invested in over 240 companies that have employed over 11,000 people throughout North America.
