Against a backdrop of declining demand for paper, KPP Group Holdings is accelerating overseas M&A. Following its acquisition of Spicers in 2019, the company acquired Antalis and has continued steadily transforming its business portfolio by making companies subsidiaries in Japan as well.
KPP Group Holdings, the largest paper trading company in Japan, has pursued M&A actively with the aim of transforming its business portfolio in Japan and overseas. In 2019, it acquired Spicers, an Australian company involved in signs and displays, followed in 2020 by the acquisition of Antalis, Europe’s largest paper trading company. This established a global operating structure under which Kokusai Pulp & Paper covers Northeast Asia, Antalis covers Europe and the Americas, and Spicers covers Asia-Pacific.
After transitioning to a holding company structure in 2022, the company accelerated M&A, reorganizing its local corporate entities and strengthening collaboration. The cumulative total has reached nearly 30 transactions, and the company has announced 7 M&A transactions this year. In Japan, it has continued making companies subsidiaries, including Sinanen Eco Works, which recycles wood waste, Chugai Photo Chemical, a manufacturer of photographic chemicals and inkjet paper, and Prosper Graph, which specializes in design and point-of-sale decoration.
The target areas have expanded to packaging materials and visual communications as digitalization advances. In regions including Oceania and Southeast Asia, the company is diversifying its business by acquiring adjacent businesses through bolt-on M&A. Under its long-term vision, GIFT2030, it aims to achieve ¥1 trillion in revenue and ¥30 billion in operating profit in the fiscal year ending March 2031, although challenges including developing the North American market and rebuilding its business in China have also been identified.