Filed by Cott Corporation
Pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended
And deemed filed pursuant to Rule 14d-2
Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended
Subject Company: Primo Water Corporation
Commission File No: 001-34850
On
January 13, 2020, Dave Muscato, President of DS Services of America, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Cott Corporation (DS), sent the following email message all associates of DS.
Dear DS Associates,
As you may have seen in an earlier email,
this morning Cott Corporation, our parent company, announced its new strategy of focusing on the growing water categories of its business. With this new focus, Cott announced an agreement to acquire Primo Water Corporation (Primo) as Cott and DS
continue to transform into the North American leader in sustainable hydration solutions and provider of office coffee services. This is an exciting next step in Cotts transformation into a company focused on providing hydration solutions to
customers when and how they want, and we are thrilled to welcome Primo into the Cott family of companies once the deal closes.
As Ive shared with
you, our vision for DS Services (DS) is to become North Americas favorite water, coffee and filtration service provider and create customers for life by making
better-for-you beverages simple. Todays announcement represents a significant milestone in our journey to fulfill that vision. Primo is a leading provider of water
dispensers, purified bottled water, and self-service refill drinking water in the U.S. and Canada. The addition of Primo broadens our capabilities and portfolio, enabling attractive cross-selling opportunities and vertical integration across Home
Office Delivery (HOD), Retail, Filtration, and Exchange services.
The agreement to acquire Primo builds upon the successful partnership between DS and
Primo, as we are the primary bottler and distributor for their water exchange business. Through this partnership, we know Primo well and are excited to have their outstanding team join us. They share our commitment to quality, product innovation,
marketing partnerships, and environmental sustainability.
As Tom mentioned in his message, Cott will rebrand its name, often associated with legacy
businesses that Cott no longer operates, and assume the Primo name and brand following closing of the transaction. The Primo brand is a familiar name in sustainable water solutions and will help drive the visibility of Cotts water businesses,
including DS. The rebranding will impact the Cott name only not the DS name or our family of brands, such as Sparkletts, Standard Coffee, Crystal Springs and Mountain Valley.
For now, it is business as usual for DS associates. We expect the transaction to close later in the first quarter of 2020, subject to typical conditions for
transactions like this, and the actual integration of operations must await closing. In the meantime, lets stay focused on delivering an outstanding experience for our customers and creating customers for life.
If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to your direct manager, HR partner, or share feedback with me. You can email me at
askdave@dsservices.com.
Thank you all for the hard work you do every day to deliver for our customers.
Sincerely,
Dave Muscato
President, DS Services
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