Consumer Products Mergers and Acquisitions

Holland & Knight has the experience to effectively navigate the challenges facing buyers and sellers of businesses in transition and work to achieve their goals. While our attorneys have broad consumer products M&A experience, they are particularly adept at M&A deals involving food brands, personal care products, sporting goods, fashion, beauty and luxury goods, and alcohol and other beverage products.

When we represent buyers in corporate carve-outs, spinoffs and other types of transactions, our focus reaches far beyond the dotted line, with the ultimate goal of a resulting enterprise positioned to succeed. We know from experience how to properly address supply and customer contracts, inventory valuation, Universal Product Codes (UPCs), product-related artwork, gross-to-net issues, return policies and transition services agreements, among other matters, so the new company can operate independently.

When needed in connection with M&A activity or company representations, our attorneys can call on Holland & Knight colleagues experienced in litigation, intellectual property, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations, antitrust laws, taxes, environmental law, labor and employment, international trade, real estate and other related practices. Regarding FDA regulations and compliance, our lawyers have specific knowledge related to product approval, marketing and distribution, and we advise companies on premarket and postmarket FDA regulatory strategies, including product classification, application filings, Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) requirements and other manufacturing issues.

Holland & Knight ranks among the top five most active law firms in the United States, and top 10 globally, in reputable, benchmarking league tables published by Bloomberg, LSEG, Mergermarket, PitchBook and The Deal. These rankings reflect our innovative approach, commitment to high-quality client service and dedication to establishing long-standing relationships.

Key Commercial Transactions

In addition to advising clients in strategic M&A transactions, our lawyers represent consumer product companies on a variety of important commercial transactions and other matters, including those as listed below.

• manufacturing agreements
• private label agreements
• licensing agreements
• supplier and customer agreements
• distribution agreements
• logistics/warehousing agreements
• labor and employment matters
• equity and debt financings
• real estate transactions and matters
• information technology and privacy agreements and matters
• FDA enforcement actions
• joint ventures
• recapitalizations
• franchising
• special committee, fairness opinion and corporate governance engagements

HK Deal Flow℠

Tapping long-standing relationships throughout the banking, financial and legal communities, our unique HK Deal Flow℠ program supplements deal-sourcing strategies, opens doors and generates leads before they hit the market. This proprietary program has successfully sourced hundreds of deals and made hundreds more introductions for our clients.