Houlihan Lokey Advises Fortune International

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Fortune International, LLC (Fortune) has been recapitalized by Investcorp.

This deal represents another successful transaction for Houlihan Lokey in the food and beverage industry.

Fortune was founded in 2001 by CEO Sean O’Scannlain, who will continue to lead the company and maintain a significant ownership stake. The company has cultivated a loyal and diverse customer base through its commitment to sourcing the freshest, highest quality products and delivering industry-leading service levels. With a strong founder-led management team, Fortune has grown to become one of the largest seafood and specialty food distributors in the U.S.

Fortune distributes fresh seafood, frozen seafood, and gourmet foods, offering more than 12,000 stock-keeping units (SKUs) to fine-dining restaurants, grocery stores, hotels, and other customers, primarily across the Midwestern United States. The company has continually expanded its geographic footprint by acquiring specialty distributors in strategic markets. In order to maintain operational flexibility, Investcorp and Mr. O’Scannlain have capitalized the company with a conservative capital structure to fund a deliberate acquisition strategy and further accelerate Fortune’s geographic expansion.

Fortune operates a state-of-the-art facility in Bensenville, Illinois, located in close proximity to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, which enables timely delivery of products across key Midwestern metropolitan statistical areas. In addition to its Bensenville facility, Fortune operates facilities in Minneapolis, Minnesota; St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri; Bayou La Batre and Birmingham, Alabama; and Picayune, Mississippi.

Investcorp has a deep history of collaborating with founder-led businesses and this transaction represents the firm’s fifth partnership with a U.S.-based founder-led business over the last two years. In addition, Investcorp has a long track record of investing in the supply chain and distribution industries with notable past investments, including Berlin Packaging, FleetPride, and American Tire Distributors.