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Baked goods maker Aryzta will hold an extraordinary general meeting on Wednesday. But the election announced for the post of Chairman of the Board of Directors has been canceled.
Before the merger: a Hiestand employee at the former Lupfig AG production site.
Photo: Gaetan Bally (Keystone)
Where to start with the story of the baked goods giant Aryzta? For example, when did Hiestand, Gipfeli-King Alfred “Fredy” Hiestand’s company and the Irish company IAWS of the Aryzta Group go up? In subsequent years, the company He was on the way to growth, but he got too in debt and still paid princely salaries to senior managers? Or in 2017, when the entire executive suite quit? These episodes alone show that a lot has gone wrong at the company with a turnover of just over 3 billion francs in recent years. The latest events fit perfectly.
Actually, there should have been a big showdown on Wednesday. A group of shareholders around activist investor Veraison wants to install a new chairman of the board of directors. His name is Urs Jordi and he is a very well known name in the industry. Jordi was the boss at Hiestand and later also at Aryzta. So he knows the frozen baked goods business very well.
On the other hand, Aryzta started the race with Andreas Schmid. Schmid is a multiple member, currently he is, for example, Chairman of the Management Board of Zurich Airport. He used to work at the world’s largest chocolate manufacturer, Barry Callebaut, the tobacco company Oettinger Davidoff, Gategroup, and many others.
Presented in August, retreat in September
The group only put Schmid on the line as the new president in August. But on Tuesday Schmid withdrew. The official reason: It was made available to an independent company or a company with strong industrial interests, according to a statement. But now it is the case that this solution is no longer an option. This refers to the negotiations for a possible acquisition by the Elliott investment group of the American billionaire Paul Singer, which was announced last Thursday.
There has been speculation for months with the Aryzta acquisition: the company itself had announced that there were several parties interested in an acquisition. Such a step shouldn’t have come as a surprise to Schmid. Even if he said on the “balance sheet” at the end of August: “A quick sale is not the focus.”
It is possible that it has already been leaked how the majorities are in electronic voting in the period prior to the extraordinary general assembly. And Schmid lost to Jordi. Shareholders were able to vote until last Friday, probably only a few will cast their vote on Wednesday. Therefore, it is possible that Schmid has drawn the consequences of the voting.
It doesn’t matter why Schmid has now retired: Aryzta’s story doesn’t end there. It is now realistic that Veraison’s man, Urs Jordi, will be elected to the new board of directors on Wednesday. Upon request, a spokesperson confirmed that the general meeting will be held as announced. Negotiations with Elliott may continue after the election. If they fail because Elliott bids too low, the company has the same time ahead.
Aryzta has made losses time and again in recent years, and the stock price plummeted. The debt is high. The Veraison group wants to reduce the debt by 600 million francs. That is supposed to happen with sales. Consequently, there is likely to be little calm in the company in the future. And the legacy of the king of croissants, Alfred Hiestand, will make headlines for many more.
It had recently been found in the “Sunday newspaper” Critic of Hiestand’s previous IPO: “In hindsight, it was a mistake to go public.” Only then was the merger of Hiestand and IAWS possible. And this is the beginning of this inglorious story about the baked goods manufacturer.
