France's Tikehau buys 25% of Italian packaging firm Brandart

MILAN (Reuters) - French investment firm Tikehau Capital has bought 25% of Italian packaging company Brandart, a supplier to high-end fashion, eyewear, jewellery and spirits brands, as the sector invests to cut carbon emissions and improve sustainability.

Headquartered near Milan, Brandart had 215 million euros ($231 million) in revenues in 2022 with a core profit margin of 14.8%, Tikehau and Brandart said in a joint statement.

Brandart founder and CEO Maurizio Sedgh will retain control of the group, with Tikehau providing strategic support to expand the business into new markets.

To boost its green credentials, Brandart uses recycled and certified raw materials, also adopting eco-design strategies to minimise raw material usage and make transportation more efficient.

Tikehau invested in Brandart under its private equity decarbonisation strategy, a fund dedicated to helping companies implement steps to cut carbon emissions.

Recent research by consultancy Bain showed that over the past decade M&A deals in the paper and packaging sector were more than double those in the broader manufacturing industry relative to the sector's size.

Earlier this week, Ireland's Smurfit Kappa agreed to buy U.S. rival WestRock for $11 billion to create the world's biggest paper and packaging company and try to better navigate weak economies on both sides of the Atlantic.

The paper and packaging sector has seen more than 2,000 transactions completed since 2007, Bain said, adding 84 deals were greater than $1 billion and 11 greater than $5 billion.

Bain said fragmentation across many regions continued to offer significant M&A opportunities in a sector which is battling cost inflation and investment to support the green transition. ($1 = 0.9308 euros)

(Reporting by Valentina Za; Editing by Keith Weir)