Cott Completes $1.25 Bln Acquisition Of DSS Group

(RTTNews) - Cott Corp (COT, BCB.TO) said Friday it has closed the acquisition of DSS Group Inc, parent company to DS Services of America Inc. ("DSS"), a bottled water and coffee direct-to-consumer services provider and a portfolio company of Crestview Partners, for about $1.25 billion.

The acquisition extends Cott's beverage portfolio into new and growing markets, including water and coffee home and office delivery services, water filtration services, and retail services, while creating revenue and cost synergies as well as portfolio expansion.

In addition, the acquisition is expected to broaden the distribution platform of Cott by adding a national direct-to-consumer distribution channel with the 2,100 customer routes operated by DSS.

DSS will operate as a subsidiary of Cott, based in Atlanta, Georgia, and will continue to be led by Tom Harrington, DSS's current CEO and President, as well as the company's present leadership team.