Cott

Cott Corporation

Type	Public
Traded as	TSX: BCB NYSE: COT
Industry	Business Services
Founded	1952
Headquarters	Mississauga, Ontario, Tampa, FL, Canada, United States
Number of locations	Over 50 manufacturing sites and over 370 branch distribution and warehouse facilities throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and Israel.[1]
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Chairman: David T. Gibbons President and CEO: Jerry Fowden CFO: Jay Wells
Products	Water, coffee, tea, extracts, and filtration equipment
Services	Home and office bottled water delivery, office coffee services, filtration services, and full service production and creation of hot beverage portfolios centered around coffee, tea and extract solutions
Revenue	$2.3 Billion (2017)
Operating income	$48.9 Million (2017)
Net income	($3.6) Million (2017)
Total assets	$3.0 Billion (2017)
Total equity	$879.6 Million (2017)
Number of employees	10,400
Subsidiaries	see below
Website	www.cott.com

Cott Corporation is a beverage and foodservice company based in Canada. Cott's platform across North America and Europe is supported by sales and distribution facilities and fleets, as well as wholesalers and distributors, servicing residences, businesses, restaurant chains, hotels and motels, small and large retailers, and healthcare facilities. In bottled water, Cott offers brands including Sparkletts, Hinckley Springs, Kentwood Springs, Canadian Springs, Labrador, and Eden Springs. In office coffee services, Cott offers products under brands including Keurig, Mars Alterra, Starbucks Coffee, Caribou Coffee, Peet's Coffee & Tea, Javarama, and Lavazza. In coffee roasting and tea blending, Cott sells the majority of its manufactured coffee and tea products under retailer or foodservice brands to customers who own the trademarks associated with those products.^[2]

History

Cott Beverage Corporation was founded in 1923 by Solomon Cott, a Polish immigrant, and his son Harry, in Port Chester, New York. Harry Pencer, a clothier from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, began to import Cott sodas into Quebec, Canada, in 1952. In 1955 Pencer acquired the Canadian rights to the Cott label and established Cott Beverages (Canada) Ltd., to bottle the Cott line of sodas. From 1976 to 1991, Cott expanded its distribution throughout Canada and back into the U.S. and into Europe.^[3] In 1969, the name was changed to Cott Beverages Ltd., and in 1991 to Cott Corporation.^[4] In October 2000, Concord Beverages, with its Vintage brand seltzer water, was acquired from Honickman Group.^[5]

In July 2010, Cott announced its acquisition of Cliffstar Corporation, a US supplier of store-branded beverages.^[6]

In November 2014, Cott announced it had agreed to a deal to acquire U.S. direct-to-consumer bottled water and coffee distributor DSS Group Inc. for aggregate consideration of $1.25 billion.^[7]

In June 2016, Cott announced it had agreed to a deal to acquire Eden Springs, Europe's largest home and office water delivery business as well as a top five position in filtration and office coffee services with presence in 17 European countries and Israel.^[8]

In August 2016, Cott announced the acquisition of S&D Coffee and Tea, a U.S.-based manufacturer, distributor and service provider of custom coffee roasting, tea blending and liquid extract production.^[9]

In July 2017, Cott announced that it had entered into a definitive agreement to sell its carbonated soft drinks and juice manufacturing businesses to Refresco (Euronext:RFRG) for aggregate consideration of USD$1.25 billion. The transaction included the Cott North America, Cott U.K. and Cott Mexico business units (excluding the RCI International division and its associated manufacturing facility located in Columbus, GA United States as well as the Aimia Foods Division located in the United Kingdom). The transaction closed on January 30, 2018.^[10]

Products

Three gallon and five gallon bottled water, small format bottled water, coffee, brewed tea, water dispensers, coffee and tea brewers, specialty coffee, liquid coffee, tea concentrate, single cup coffee, cold brewed coffee, iced blend coffee or tea beverages, tea, blended teas, hot tea, sparkling tea, coffee or tea extract solutions, filtration equipment, hot chocolate, soups, malt drinks, creamers/whiteners, cereals, beverage concentrates and mineral water.

Acquisitions

In May 2014, Cott completed the acquisition of Aimia Foods (Holdings) Limited, a privately held producer and distributor of hot chocolate, coffee and powdered beverages primarily through foodservice, vending and retail channels, and a producer of hot and cold cereal products on a contract manufacturing basis located in Merseyside, United Kingdom.^[11]

In December 2014, Cott completed the acquisition of DSS Group, Inc. a bottled water and coffee direct-to-consumer home and office delivery services provider in the United States. The aggregate consideration was approximately $1.25 billion.^[12]

In January 2016, Cott completed the acquisition of Aquaterra, a Canadian bottled water and coffee direct-to-consumer home and office delivery services provider. The initial purchase price paid by Cott was approximately C$62 million.^[13]

In August 2016, Cott completed the acquisition of Eden Springs, a European provider direct-to-consumer services provider specializing in home and office delivery water, office coffee services and filtration solutions. The initial purchase price paid by Cott was approximately €470 million.^[14]

In August 2016, Cott completed the acquisition of S&D Coffee and Tea, a privately held premium coffee roaster and provider of customized coffee, tea and extract solutions to the foodservice, convenience, hospitality and office segments located in Concord, North Carolina United States. The initial purchase price paid by Cott was approximately $355 million.^[15]

In 2017, Cott acquired Decantae Mineral Water Ltd, located in North Wales, United Kingdom.

Corporate governance

Subsidiaries

^[16]

References