Chicago, Feb 04 — Shore Capital Partners (“Shore” or “Shore Capital”) is pleased to announce the formation of Produce One, a multi-regional specialty produce distribution platform established following Shore’s strategic partnership with Premier ProduceOne (“PPO”) and add-on acquisition of Native Maine Produce (“Native Maine”).
Through these foundational partnerships, Shore plans to partner with leading produce companies that share a commitment to service excellence, quality sourcing, and regional distribution strength. PPO was founded in 1948 by the Pavlofsky family and, in partnership with Tony Anselmo and Anthony Rossi, built the business to provide statewide distribution coverage across Ohio. The third and fourth generation Pavlofskys will continue leading the PPO division alongside Shore to drive continued growth and development. Native Maine recently joined the platform, providing geographic expansion and introducing unique sourcing and products that complement the broader business. Together, these partnerships provide the foundation for Produce One’s multi-regional footprint, specialty produce offering, and best-in-class service capabilities.
“We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with Gary and Ervin Pavlofsky to build a leading specialty produce distribution and processing business in the Midwest and Eastern United States,” said Jeff Smart, Partner at Shore Capital. “PPO and Native Maine have built impressive organizations grounded in customer service, consistent high quality, and competitive pricing. We will work hard to build on the historical success the founders have achieved while carrying forward the unique family business cultures and continuous improvement mindset that has led to this point.”
“Our partnership with Shore Capital will allow us to accelerate our organic growth through new customer acquisition, product and category expansion and exploring opportunities to support our current and future customers with value-added processing capabilities,” said Ervin Pavlofsky, third generation PPO Owner and Business Development Leader. “We are confident that Shore’s playbook and resources will help us take the platform to the next level, as we look to build on our existing business while also exploring add-on partnership opportunities with other distribution and processing companies in the Midwest and Eastern U.S.”
Produce One will invest in sales and marketing, procurement, technology systems and warehouse and distribution infrastructure to further enhance operations and explore new growth avenues. The company will also pursue inorganic growth opportunities through add-on acquisition partnerships to expand geographic coverage, category depth and channel and format capabilities.
Additionally, Shore announced that Tom Wienclaw will lead Produce One as Chief Executive Officer. Tom brings 20 years of foodservice distribution experience to the platform. With continued Founder and Owner-Operator involvement, Tom as CEO and a strong management team in place, the platform is positioned to build on the success and operational excellence of each individual business.