Deloitte assisted the asset management firm The Rohatyn Group in the sale of the pet care platform Pet Network

Deloitte assisted the asset management firm The Rohatyn Group (TRG) in the sale of Pet Network, the leading omni-channel pet care platform in South-Eastern Europe, present through multiple brands in Romania, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia and Bulgaria, to the private equity firm A&M Capital Europe. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021.

Pet Network operates in Romania through the Animax and MaxiPet brands. The platform was created in 2018, after TRG bought and merged three pet supplies businesses present across South-Eastern Europe. The oldest of these businesses is Pet Centar, which opened its first store in Croatia in 1999 and has expanded since then in Serbia and Romania. The other two businesses acquired by TRG in 2018 are Animax, operating in Romania, founded by Cristian Ludovic Pop, and Mr. Pet, active in Slovenia. Over the past year, Pet Network also expanded to Bulgaria and now operates more than 150 physical stores across five countries, as well as various e-commerce channels and additional services such as veterinary pharmacies.

“This transaction was a complex project, considering its amplitude and the fact that it includes assets in five countries. Deloitte’s teams in SE Europe and Pet Network’s management have worked closely over several months, which helped both in preparing the reports specific to this type of transaction and in facilitating the discussions with the potential investors,” stated Radu Dumitrescu, Financial Advisory Partner-in-charge, Deloitte Romania.

Deloitte assisted TRG with vendor due diligence and transaction support services provided by a multi-disciplinary and cross-border team including experts in Romania, Croatia, Slovenia and Bulgaria. The Romanian financial advisory team included Radu Dumitrescu, Partner-in-charge, Miruna Ciocea, Senior Manager, Ionut Vasilescu, Manager, Laura Necsuliu, Senior Associate, and Crina Stratan, Associate. The tax team was made of Dan Badin, Partner, Ioana Nastase, Senior Manager, and Monica Zipis, Senior Consultant.

“This is one of the most significant transactions in the sector and it demonstrates that pet care businesses attract investor interest due to their growth potential. The Deloitte due diligence multi-disciplinary team had an integrated approach across several different jurisdictions from the very beginning of the project, which contributed to this successful transaction,” added Miruna Ciocea, Financial Advisory Senior Manager, Deloitte Romania.

With a team of 50 experts, Deloitte is one of the leading players in Romania in financial advisory and provides services to both local and multinational clients active in the private and the public sector. In 2020, Deloitte Romania’s Financial Advisory team was involved in over 100 complex projects through all its service lines.