Northwest Acquisition Expands Acosta's Foodservice Division

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Acosta Sales & Marketing acquired The PacNorth Group with offices in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska. The non-food manufacturer agency represents an extensive selection of manufacturers and products for the foodservice industry.

"The powerful combination of Acosta Foodservice, Acosta Cornerstone and The PacNorth Group will provide exponential integrated resources to manufacturers, distributors and operators to build business in the Northwest," stated Mark Hayden, president of Acosta Foodservice.

Acosta Foodservice provides integrated sales and marketing solutions for major food and non-food manufacturers, distributors and operators across all away-from-home meal channels, while Acosta Cornerstone offers a non-foods team dedicated solely to disposables, equipment and supplies.

PacNorth's integration into Acosta's foodservice division will expand Acosta Cornerstone's non-foods coverage in the Northwest region, the company said.

"Strong, local relationships are critical to our success, and The PacNorth Group will enable Acosta to increase personalized service across the region," added Dan Rodenbush, executive vice president of Acosta Cornerstone.

This is just the most recent of several notable acquisitions Acosta has made within the past year. In September, Acosta announced the acquisition of Valley Stream, N.Y.-based United Sales Concepts, which expanded Acosta Cornerstone's coverage in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Texas and Eastern Canada.

"Our team is excited to become a part of Acosta's culture focused on people, teamwork, trust and results," said Andy Steckler, president of United Sales Concepts. "We are aligning ourselves with experienced foodservice industry experts and providing best-in-class training opportunities for our associates. By joining forces with Acosta, we will be able to provide our clients with new resources to drive growth and sales."

Additionally, Acosta acquired Lubbock, Texas-based Lenhart & Associates to expand its fresh division. After partnering with local and regional agencies to create the first national fresh platform, Acosta Fresh now provides integrated sales and marketing solutions for manufacturers combined with leading retail execution for all perimeter categories, according to the company.

"Lenhart & Associates is one of the leading meat brokers in the West Texas market with an impressive track record and strong local relationships that complement our successful grocery operation," said Mark Switala, executive vice president, grocery sales, West at Acosta. "Together, we will be able to provide unmatched personalized service to clients and customers in Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Oklahoma and Kansas."