Actis backs Chinese kitchen equipment designer

The largest designer and maker of Western style mid-range commercial kitchen equipment in the country, Beijing-based Vesta's products include fryers, griddles, warmers, ovens, combination steamers and dishwashers for use in restaurants, hotels and canteens. Its flagship brand, Justa, was founded in 2000.

Dining out is a burgeoning trend in China and Western-style cuisine is becoming increasingly popular due to rising wealth and changing lifestyles, especially among younger customers. Vesta's business stands to benefit from this demand, as well as to the organic expansion of the Chinese catering industry.

"Building on our extensive domain knowledge in the catering industry, we recognized Vesta as a key player within a promising segment of the industry value chain," said Meng Ann Lim, head of China and South East Asia at Actis. "We plan to add significant value to the business, and are very confident about the prospects of this investment."

Since Actis invested, a corporate governance system has been installed, with the private equity firm holding three out of five board seats.

Professional managers and industry advisers have also been brought in to help the company better capture opportunities within the vast Chinese catering market. This will involve extending product lines and building out a strong domestic distribution channel.

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• Topics
• Expansion
• Greater China
• Industrials
• Actis Capital
• China
• Growth capital
• manufacturing