Unilever to acquire Betty Ice

05-Feb-2018 - Last updated on 05-Feb-2018 at 11:56 GMT

Unilever is taking over the top selling ice-cream company in Romania, Betty Ice.

Unilever has signed an agreement to acquire Romanian ice-cream company Betty Ice SRL.

Betty Ice was founded in 1994 by Romanian entrepreneur Vasile Armenean. The company is the main local ice-cream producer in Romania, with a total turnover of €30m ($37.4m).

The company, which has 760 employees, owns one factory in Suceava, in the north east of the country, and has more than 180 ice-cream kiosks open during summer.

Standalone unit

Unilever’s South Central Europe Ice Cream division and Betty Ice will operate as a standalone unit within Unilever and will be led by Armenean, who will act as general manager.

Unilever said the partnership aims to further expand the brand by combining the strengths of the Unilever group with the local ice-cream market expertise and knowhow of Armenean.

Armenean said during its 23-year history, the company has become the number one Romanian ice cream brand, which is now joining the world’s top ice-cream producer.

“Our legacy and Unilever’s vision are a perfect match for the future of Betty Ice brand,” Armenean said.

The agreement is subject to regulatory approval by Romanian competition authorities, while the value of the transaction has not been disclosed.