Private equity firm Cognetas is to purchase a majority stake in the Saint-Gobain Group specialty bottles business Saint-Gobain Desjonquères (SGD) together with Sagard, the French private equity house. Under the agreement, the Saint-Gobain Group has agreed to sell 100% of Saint-Gobain Desjonquères and its subsidiaries. Saint-Gobain Group will reinvest a 20% stake in SGD and will be represented on the board of directors. The management team, led by François Dujardin, will also hold a stake in the company. Edward Koopman of Cognetas said: "We are delighted to have gained a unique asset in the glass packaging industry, one which is a clear market leader in its field and well positioned to leverage its footprint and expertise in the western world and expand into developing markets. We look forward to working alongside the management and employees in delivering their strategy and achieving their goals." Saint-Gobain Desjonquères is a worldwide leader in the manufacture of specialised glass bottles and flasks with high market shares in all business lines, particularly in selective perfume flasks as well as specialty pharmaceutical bottles. It has 11 manufacturing sites and 20 furnaces worldwide including in France, Germany, Spain, USA, Russia, Brazil and China. It has longstanding relationships with blue-chip customers such as LVMH, Proctor & Gamble, L'Oréal, Sanofi-Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer. In 2006 the company generated sales of approximately EUR 600 million and operating profit of EUR 50 million. The sale, which is part of the Saint-Gobain Group's ongoing business development strategy, has been approved by the relevant competition authorities.
