Acquisition · Consumer health
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical buys US over-the-counter medicine maker Alva-Amco for $108 million
- Buyer
- Kobayashi Pharmaceutical (Osaka)
- Target
- Alva-Amco Pharmacal Companies, Niles, Illinois
- Value
- $108M
- Status
- Agreed on September 30, 2020; closing was expected by the end of October 2020.
- Date
- 2020-09-30
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical agreed to buy all shares of Alva-Amco, a family-run maker of branded over-the-counter products for skin care, women's health, fungal infections, upset stomach and pain. The price was $108 million, stated in Kobayashi's Japanese filing. Alva-Amco's adviser did not disclose terms in its own announcement.
Why it matters
Kobayashi, known for niche products in Japan, wanted a US over-the-counter platform to sell more of its brands abroad.
About Alva-Amco
Alva-Amco was founded in 1904 and is based in Niles, Illinois. It had only 43 employees and sales of about $32.5 million, and its shares were held by a trust of the founding family, led by Micah Gerchenson. Its long-selling brands include FungiCure, Diurex, Nauzen, Prosacea and BackAid, sold in drugstores and supermarkets across the US and Canada.
Kobayashi in the US
Kobayashi already sold heat packs, cooling sheets and eyeglass cleaners in the US, and since 2016 the Zim's MAX pain-relief rub. It planned to pair Alva-Amco's brands and sales reach with its own research and know-how. The price was about 3.3 times Alva-Amco's annual sales.
Sources
Kakehashi M&A News home
