On 28 February, Indian technology startup Captain Fresh moved into the U.S. market in a major way via the acquisition of CenSea, a third-generation, family-owned shrimp specialist based in the Chicagoland area of the U.S. Midwest.
In an interview with SeafoodSource, CenSea Co-President Nate Torch explained the rationale behind the move and what will come next for CenSea and Captain Fresh.
SeafoodSource: Why has CenSea been sold by the Feigon family after so many years of family ownership?
Torch: There's been a major consolidation in the industry, and it takes a lot more financing to run a business and be a seafood importer these days.
So, looking at the fact that third generations don't always want to remain running companies, the family is not super actively involved in the company, and Jeff and I just felt if it were our own company, we'd be selling and looking for partners. Then, we would work with them for three to five years, and hopefully, they have a good transition and keep the company going.
But, with the overseas competition coming in and the requirements of our customers in this day and age, it made sense to sell the business. We started talking about it in late 2022, and the process got underway in early 2023.
SeafoodSource: Why did it take more than a year to get the deal done?
Torch: This did take a long time, but I think sometimes sales take a long time. It’s a lot of work bringing a buyer and seller together. We were going through a process of making presentations to companies, and then you listen. There was a lot of due diligence and a lot of getting to know each other, and the family itself was not very fast in making the decision.
SeafoodSource: You and the rest of the leadership team are shareholders in the new entity, so it appears you're going to stay involved. Are you bullish about the future of the company?
Torch: Oh, yeah, absolutely. I would not have done this if I didn't think we had found a good partner to carry this company forward. We have a lot of young people here, and we want them to have a solid platform for the future.
SeafoodSource: This is a fairly unusual transaction for the U.S. seafood industry, with an Asian startup tech firm buying an old-school, family-owned U.S. seafood business. Why does this acquisition work for both parties?
Torch: Everybody's doing what they feel they need to do. With Captain Fresh, they're kind of a different type of company – more of a ...
