RLJ Equity Partners has sold Native Maine to Produce One, a portfolio company of Shore Capital Partners

Native Maine

Native Maine, founded in 1999 and headquartered in Westbrook, Maine, is a Northeast-focused distributor of fresh produce and specialty foods serving restaurant, institutional and wholesale customers through a multi-location distribution network across Maine, Connecticut and New York. Today, the company operates through three business units: Native Maine, Carbonella & DeSarbo and Brophy Brothers. For more information, please visit: www.nativeme.com.

The Deal

RLJ Equity Partners (RLJ) and Native Maine engaged Lincoln International to find a committed partner to support the company in executing its multifaceted growth strategy. Native Maine ultimately chose to partner with Premier ProduceOne to form Produce One, a leading multi-regional distributor of high-quality produce and specialty foods. The combined platform is backed by Shore Capital Partners, a firm with strong operational capabilities and a deep bench of resources to accelerate growth post-acquisition.

Our Perspective

Jeff Cleveland, Managing Director and Co-Head of Lincoln’s food and beverage practice, commented, “Native Maine has become a leading distributor of high-quality produce and specialty food items across the Northeast, reflecting decades of disciplined execution, trusted supplier and customer relationships and an unwavering commitment to local quality. We are privileged to have played a role in bringing the Native Maine team together with its new partners at Premier ProduceOne and Shore.”

Matt Ayanian, a Director within Lincoln’s food and beverage practice, added, “Foodservice distribution remains a highly fragmented market where mergers & acquisitions (M&A) are a critical driver of growth. Combining highly complementary operators like Premier ProduceOne and Native Maine on a single platform creates significant value through cross-selling, operational efficiencies, enhanced procurement and freight savings.”

Premier ProduceOne

Premier ProduceOne is a leading distributor of fresh produce and specialty foods serving customers across Ohio and the surrounding region. Headquartered in Columbus with additional facilities in Cleveland and Dayton, the company partners with restaurants, healthcare providers, schools and other foodservice customers to deliver high-quality products with reliable service. For more information, please visit: www.premierproduceone.com.

Shore Capital Partners

Shore Capital Partners is a Chicago-based private equity firm with offices in Nashville and is an investor in lower middle market companies in Healthcare, Food and Beverage, Business Services, Industrial and Real Estate industries. Shore’s strategy is to support management partners to grow faster with less risk through access to capital, world-class board and operational resources and unmatched networking, development and shared learnings across the portfolio. From 2020-2025, Shore received recognition from Inc Magazine as a 6x Top Founder-Friendly Investor and by Pitchbook Research for being the global leader in Private Equity total deal volume from 2019-2024. Shore targets investments in proven, successful private companies with superior management teams, stable cash flow and significant potential to grow through industry consolidation and organic growth to generate value for shareholders. Shore has approximately $14 billion of assets under management, including additional investment platforms to which it provides business and operational consulting services. For more information, please visit: www.shorecp.com.

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