Originally story courtesy of International Vitamin Corporation
On March 5th, CGCC member company International Vitamin Corporation (IVC), a world leading nutritional supplement manufacturer, announced that it has formed a joint venture with GNC Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: GNC), a leading global health and wellness brand, to integrate GNC’s Nutra manufacturing division into IVC’s operations. Nutra will be known as Nutra Manufacturing, LLC.
Under the joint venture agreement, IVC will assume control of manufacturing and integrate into GNC’s supply chain, while GNC teams will continue to support product development and innovation. Under the terms of the agreement, GNC will receive $101 million from IVC in exchange for an initial majority ownership in the joint venture. Over the next four years, GNC will receive an additional $75 million from IVC as IVC’s ownership of the joint venture increases to 100% and Nutra Manufacturing, LLC becomes wholly owned by IVC.
"Core to our mission is to operate the most technologically advanced and efficient manufacturing platform because the innovation, quality, and cost structure payoffs are so meaningful. When combined with IVC’s vertically integrated supply chain, the result is operational excellence that is difficult to compete with.” Steven Dai, Vice Chairman of CGCC, IVC President & CEO.
Dai added, “This venture demonstrates the value of our differentiated manufacturing platform. GNC, one of the most trusted and innovative supplement brands in the world will now have the ability to devote even greater resources to new product development and brand expansion, while IVC's manufacturing expertise will deliver unmatched quality at the most
competitive costs."
Ken Martindale, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GNC commented, “This partnership with IVC will provide us a level of efficiency we could not have achieved on our own while allowing our team to continue focusing on delivering high quality, innovative products to our customers”, Martindale said. “IVC has capacity to scale up, giving us room for future growth
and supporting our global expansion plans without the need for significant future capital investment.”
IVC is known for several manufacturing advantages including vertical supply chain integration to be the low-cost provider, state of the art manufacturing technologies for both high volume and flexible needs, global reach to serve expansive geographies, and 20 percent of its organization is dedicated to product quality. The combined IVC and Nutra business will command the most competitive raw material portfolio of any enterprise in supplement manufacturing.
CGCC sincerely congratulates member company IVC on its joint venture with GNC.
*Click here to read IVC's original press release and learn more about IVC*
About CGCC
Founded in 2005, the China General Chamber of Commerce - USA (“CGCC”) has been recognized as the largest and most influential non-profit organization representing Chinese enterprises in the U.S. Its membership consists of more than 1,500 Chinese and U.S. companies, 54 of which are ranked on the 2018 Fortune Global 500. CGCC's mission is to create value, generate economic growth, and enhance cooperation between the U.S. and Chinese business communities. CGCC conducts extensive research and provides a broad range of programs, services, and resources to its members and key stakeholders in an effort to foster the mutual understanding, trust, and engagement between China and the U.S. As of 2018, CGCC’s Chinese member companies have cumulatively invested over $120 billion, employ more than 200,000 people, and support over one million jobs throughout the United States.
CGCC is a national organization and includes CGCC-New York (CGCCUSA-HQ), CGCC-Chicago, CGCC-Houston, CGCC-Los Angeles, CGCC-San Francisco and CGCC-Washington D.C.