Compass Diversified, the parent of the 5.11 Tactical, BOA, Primaloft and Velocity Outdoor businesses, completed its previously announced sale of the food service business of its majority-owned subsidiary, SternoCandleLamp Holdings, Inc., to Archer Foodservice Partners for $292.5 million.
The purchase price is subject to customary working capital and other adjustments. After these adjustments and the allocation to Sterno’s non-controlling shareholders, CODI received approximately $280 million of total proceeds from the sale at closing.
CODI plans to use net proceeds from the divestiture to repay outstanding senior secured debt, which CODI expects to reduce its senior secured net leverage ratio to below 1.0x, thereby avoiding fees, as of June 30, 2026, tied to excess leverage under its senior secured indebtedness.
“The closing of this transaction marks a meaningful step forward in our ongoing deleveraging efforts,” said Elias Sabo, chief executive officer of Compass Diversified. “We moved quickly to execute this sale at a favorable valuation amidst a challenging macroeconomic backdrop. We are grateful to the Sterno team for their many contributions and believe the food service business is well positioned for its next chapter with Archer.”
Raymond James acted as financial advisor to Sterno. Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP acted as legal counsel to Sterno and CODI. Jefferies acted as financial advisor to CODI.
CODI’s Branded Consumer segment includes BOA, Primaloft, 5.11, Velocity Outdoor, Ergobaby and Lugano Diamonds. The Velocity Outdoor business includes the Crosman, Benjamin, Ravin, LaserMax, CenterPoint, and King’s Camo brands in the airguns and archery space. CODI’s Niche Industrial segment includes Altor, Arnold Magnetic Technologies, and Sterno.
Image courtesy CODI
