LITTLE ROCK, Ark.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Westrock Coffee Company (Nasdaq: WEST) (“Westrock Coffee,” or the "Company”), a leading integrated coffee, tea, flavors, extracts, and ingredients solutions provider to the retail, foodservice and restaurant, convenience store and travel center, non-commercial, CPG, and hospitality industries, announced today the Company has acquired Bixby Roasting Co. (“Bixby”), a specialty-grade roaster that is a leader in the emerging influencer-led brand space. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The acquisition, which includes Bixby’s roasting facility in Los Angeles, CA, will continue to expand Westrock Coffee’s omnichannel product marketing and development resources as it capitalizes on shifting consumer consumption trends. Bixby co-founders Miles Fisher and Remington Hotchkis, both of whom will be joining the Westrock Coffee senior management team, launched the company in 2017.
“We are delighted to welcome Miles and Remington to the Westrock Coffee team, their collective insight in sales, product development, and operational execution will be invaluable to our expanding list of premium customers,” said Scott Ford, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of Westrock Coffee.
“The emergence of influencer-led brands has created a new sales channel in the beverage business, and Bixby is at the forefront of its development,” said Elizabeth McLaughlin, Executive Vice President of Sales of Westrock Coffee. “Miles and Remington bring a depth of knowledge on these emerging channels that we are adding to the Westrock Coffee portfolio, including the co-creation of new influencer brands that are particularly appealing to young consumers. We are excited to welcome them to the Westrock Coffee team and look forward to integrating their talents and ideas into our portfolio.”
Mr. Fisher will serve as Senior Vice President of Sales while Mr. Hotchkis will be named Vice President of Sales.
“Remington and I are thrilled to take our careers and company to the next level by joining forces with Westrock Coffee,” said Miles Fisher. “Scott and his team continue to grow with their impressive customer base and look to serve their customers not only through traditional private brand offerings but also through the creation of products for specific customer segments and influencer-based brands. With the resources and momentum that Westrock Coffee brings, we are ready to get to work and fuel the product development and e-commerce offerings of the Company.”
Westrock Coffee is the beverage industry’s “brand behind the brands,” supplying the world’s most recognized brands with the world’s most transformative coffee, tea, flavors, extracts, and ingredients products. From roast and ground coffees to tea and ready-to-drink beverages, Westrock Coffee offers a comprehensive list of beverage solutions to the industry.
About Westrock Coffee Company
Westrock Coffee is a leading integrated coffee, tea, flavors, extracts, and ingredients solutions provider in the U.S., providing coffee sourcing, supply chain management, product development, roasting, packaging, and distribution services to the retail, foodservice and restaurant, convenience store and travel center, CPG, non-commercial, and hospitality industries around the world. With offices in 10 countries, the Company sources coffee and tea from 35 origin countries. For more information, please visit WestrockCoffee.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended from time to time. Forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words such as "believe," "may," "will," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "expect," "should," "would," "plan," "predict," "potential," "seem," "seek," "future," "outlook," and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, certain plans, expectations, goals, projections, and statements about the plans, objectives, expectations, and intentions of Westrock Coffee, the anticipated benefits of the Bixby acquisition, and other statements that are not historical facts. These statements are based on information available to Westrock Coffee as of the date hereof, and Westrock Coffee is not under any duty to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this communication to conform these statements to actual results. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this communication, and on the current expectations of the management of Westrock Coffee as of the date hereof and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as and should not be relied on by an investor, or others, as a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction, or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of Westrock Coffee. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, changes in domestic and foreign business, market, financial, political, and legal conditions; risks relating to the uncertainty of the projected financial information with respect to Westrock Coffee; risks related to the rollout of Westrock Coffee's business and the timing of expected business milestones; the effects of competition on Westrock Coffee's business; the ability of Westrock Coffee to issue equity or equity-linked securities or obtain debt financing in the future; the risk that Westrock Coffee fails to fully realize the potential benefits of acquisitions or has difficulty successfully integrating acquired companies; the availability of equipment and the timely performance by suppliers involved with the build-out of the Conway, Arkansas manufacturing facility and distribution center; the loss of significant customers; and those factors discussed in Westrock Coffee’s registration statement on Form S-1, which was deemed effective by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on December 21, 2022, under the heading “Risk Factors”, and other documents Westrock Coffee has filed, or will file, with the SEC. If any of these risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that Westrock Coffee does not presently know, or that Westrock Coffee currently believes are immaterial, that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. In addition, the forward-looking statements reflect Westrock Coffee's expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this communication. Westrock Coffee anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause Westrock Coffee's assessments to change. However, while Westrock Coffee may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, Westrock Coffee specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a representation of Westrock Coffee's assessments as of any date subsequent to the date of this communication. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements.
