Famous Software's Heather Hammack and Church Brothers Farms' Steve Church Discuss Strategic M&A Benefits

FRESNO, CA - Strategic mergers and acquisitions continue to shake up the fresh produce industry as companies make tactical moves to position themselves for future stability and growth. While such a deal often presents a wide variety of strengths for two merging enterprises, fresh produce businesses also need to be prepared for the challenges that may arise during the process. Heather Hammack, President, took a moment to explain how Famous Software provides its partners with an advantage in this arena.

Peggy Packer: Heather, can you start by breaking down what unique challenges can arise as produce companies undergo strategic acquisitions and mergers?

Heather Hammack: “Bringing together two enterprises carries inherent challenges, whether that is wading through tough negotiations, integrating two unique cultures, or navigating volatile market conditions. In fresh produce, the challenges can feel more pronounced given the fast pace of our industry. 

Some common challenges we have seen as our customers work through mergers and acquisitions include: integration challenges, cultural misalignment, overestimating synergies—especially when working with different or new commodities, communication breakdowns, talent retention, and technology or IT integration.”

PP: How does Famous Software help its partners overcome or mitigate these challenges?

HH: “Famous Software has been serving the technology needs of the fresh produce industry for over 50 years, and our team of seasoned, fresh produce experts has seen the industry change dramatically since 1975. That level of experience and expertise is rare in a technology company, and as such, Famous Software can provide invaluable insight and guidance to customers navigating through major changes such as a merger or acquisition.

One of the challenges can be merging different processes, especially when bringing on new commodities that may have different production or growing needs. Famous Software serves customers across the fresh produce industry with various business models. That allows us to evaluate different processes and provide guidance on best practices that we’ve observed and, in some instances, helped build across the myriad of customer profiles we serve.

Another piece of the M&A puzzle that can ensure a smooth transition is ensuring technology and IT integration is as seamless as possible. This is where an ERP provider who operates as a true partner and not just a service provider can make a real difference. Mergers and acquisitions can be anxiety-inducing for staff, and retention is always a risk during times of change. The Famous Software team of fresh can be a pivotal resource in providing training, consulting, and recommendations for process improvement so that current and new team members can feel confident that everyone is aligned and works competently within the system.

Church Brothers Farms has been a customer of ours for over 20 years, and during that time, we have helped them through a couple of acquisitions, most recently with Mann Packing. We have developed expertise in assisting our customers through mergers and acquisitions. We have helped some of our larger customers develop unique acquisition playbooks that they can use as they continue to bring in new operations. Whether that’s keeping companies separate or consolidating financial reporting across the organization as a whole. Our BI tool can facilitate dashboards that combine data across different operations so that leadership has one clear view."

PP: What unique advantages did Famous Software provide through Church Brothers Farms' recent acquisition of Mann Packing?

Steve Church, Co-Founder and Chairman, Church Brothers Farms: “Famous has seen us through multiple acquisitions, including Mann Packing. The biggest advantage is that we don’t have to start from scratch; they already know what needs to happen. That level of familiarity and trust is hard to replicate. On top of that, we can call Heather anytime, and she’ll jump in to help us work through whatever challenge is in front of us. From a practical standpoint, Famous is intuitive and easy to use, which is critical when you’re bringing in a new team, as getting people up to speed quickly is often the hardest part of any acquisition.”

PP: How does Famous Software’s industry experience help the company support its partners in this way?

HH: “With our focused experience in the fresh produce industry, Famous Software is familiar not only with our own customers, but we also have a depth and breadth of industry knowledge that can help customers who are evaluating a potential merger or acquisition. Our leadership team has over 100 years of combined experience working with customers and potential customers across commodities, business sizes, and company profiles. We can provide our customers with unique guidance and insight into the cultural and strategic synergies that two organizations may or may not have.

While integrating two companies poses a unique set of challenges, it’s not unlike onboarding a new ERP system. With unsurpassed expertise in onboarding new customers, Famous Software has a tried and tested implementation process that has been honed for over 50 years. That expertise can be directly applied to onboarding a new company and can help unpack potential efficiencies that a non-industry-specific provider or a less seasoned partner simply can’t provide.”

More exclusive insights from the Famous Software team are on the way, so keep reading AndNowUKnow!