For Craft Catalyst client High Road Craft, the construction of a 25,000 square foot ice cream production facility meant autonomy and scalability. And with growing foodservice and retail businesses underscoring the promise of a bright future, in 2014 High Road was able to secure the funding necessary to make the dream of a factory reality.
Despite the influx of capital, the addition of such a grand facility to overhead proved to be daunting. A move to go big that could have buried the company in a matter of months had prospects not been favorable.
It never ceases to amaze how hard work yields good fortune (some call it “luck”). As the finishing touches were applied to the factory, an exploratory conference call between Craft Catalyst and Ciao Bella’s financial backers, with whom CC had previously worked on other deals, uncovered a fortuitous synergy. Ciao Bella was seeking a co-packer for a particular foodservice item in their portfolio, and – with the investment in new equipment – High Road had just turned on the ability to produce it.
Borne out of this CC-led dialogue was a strategic partnership representing the potential of millions in topline revenue to High Road. Chalk it up to the law of six degrees of separation…as large as the food & beverage industry may be, it’s a small world.