Gruppo Rispo’s frozen foods (90 million in revenue) acquired by Bluegem Capital Partners

Gruppo Rispo, an Italian producer of premium frozen specialities, is being acquired by Bluegem Capital Partners, a private equity firm headquartered in London.

The sellers are the funds managed by Luxembourg-based Europe Capital Partners, which invested in 2018.

The transaction was brokered by Clearwater, one of Europe’s leading independent corporate finance firms.

The four Gruppo Rispo companies

Gruppo Rispo offers a wide range comprising specialities such as arancini, supplì, olive all’ascolana and pumpkin flowers, as well as pinsa and Roman focaccia.

During the previous ownership period, the company saw four Italian businesses come together: Rispo itself, from Maddaloni (Caserta); Gela, from Ascoli Piceno (which joined in 2019); the Rimini-based Panificio Villa, from Misano Adriatico (since 2021); and, since 2023, Garbo, from Bracciano, in metropolitan Rome.

The group currently employs more than 250 people, serves more than 750 customers across the foodservice, retail and B2b channels and is present in more than 15 countries across four continents.

For 2026, it forecasts revenue of more than 90 million euros and Ebitda of approximately 14 million.

Bluegem also has Lagfin, Campari’s controlling shareholder

Bluegem has established experience in the food and beverage sector, further strengthened in June 2025 by the acquisition of a stake in Lagfin, the family office of the Garavoglia family, best known for being the majority shareholder of Gruppo Campari.

Building on this expertise, the new owner intends to support Rispo’s chief executive, Franck Bocquet, in creating a leading pan-European platform for premium frozen specialities, accelerating its development in international markets, strengthening its sales organisation, investing in product innovation and pursuing a targeted acquisition strategy both in Italy and across our continent.

At the same time, Rispo’s management team will reinvest alongside Bluegem, retaining a minority stake, and will be joined by Paolo Perego. The top executive, appointed chairman of Gruppo Rispo, has more than 30 years’ experience in the food & beverage sector.

Pagliara, Clearwater: Italian-made products remain highly attractive

Clearwater, which has 20 offices internationally and has completed more than 3.200 deals worth over 186,7 billion euros, provided Bluegem itself with ongoing advice, supporting it throughout all stages of the acquisition: from conception and strategic planning, through assessment of the opportunity, to negotiation and signing of the agreement.

Andrea Pagliara, managing partner at Clearwater Italia, notes: “This transaction provides further confirmation of the trends we are observing in the market. Assets linked to Italian-made products continue to stand out for their ability to attract international investors, particularly in segments that combine quality, a strong product identity and premium positioning.

“Added to this is the growing interest in the frozen specialities sector, driven by the gradual evolution of consumption habits and demand for products capable of combining quality and convenience”.

This article was translated from the original Italian version with the assistance of artificial intelligence. In case of discrepancies, please refer to the original Italian version.