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'Culture and values' fuel family business merger

By Rashmi Kumar

Mergers and acquisitions of family businesses have been on an upward trend. The combination of a long-term outlook and a desire to preserve family heritage often woos companies controlled by families to look to each other for expansion and growth.

This line of thought was recently seen when two family-owned packaging companies in the US merged their businesses. Menasha Packaging, a subsidiary of privately held Menasha Corporation, has acquired fellow family-controlled Strive Group in a move to broaden its market share, the company said in a statement.

“We believe there is an excellent strategic fit between the companies; we both are midwest-based, family-owned companies with strong cultures and values,” Jim Kotek, president and chief executive of Menasha Corporation, said in the release on 31 January.

Wisconsin-based Menasha, which is a packaging, logistics and marketing services company, was founded in 1849 by Elisha Smith. With revenues of more than $1 billion (€760 million), the family-run business is looking to further boost its sales.

Mike Waite, a family member by marriage and president of the packaging operations, said that acquiring Strive will “enhance [Menasha’s] merchandising supply chain model and strengthen [its] geographic coverage”. The company is currently chaired by David Shepard, a direct descendant of the founder.

By acquiring Chicago-based Strive Group, the Shepard family has teamed up with a business that can trace its roots to the 1960s. The business began when Dick Sharfstein and his father Robert established Pride Container, a company that dealt only with packaging.

Dick’s two sons took over in 1997 and transformed the then failing business into one that focused on designing, packaging and display assembly.

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