CVC Asia hires retail industry veteran

CVC Capital Partners has appointed retail veteran Jeremy Hobbins as senior adviser to the pan-Asia team, according to a statement from the firm. 

Hobbins has 30 years of experience in consumer retail, sourcing and distribution and has held senior leadership positions at several international retail and distribution companies.

He is currently a director of Fung Holdings, the controlling shareholder of the Fung Group, a large global logistics, distribution and retailing firm and also sits of the board of Convenience Retail Asia. 

Prior to his current position, Hobbins was the group managing director of Trinity Limited, the Hong Kong-listed luxury men's wear company.

Hobbins previously held a number of senior management positions in Procter & Gamble, Hutchison Whampoa and Cadbury Schweppes, where he started his career in brand management.

“Jeremy will bring extensive industry experience and a broad regional network to support CVC's efforts to identify and evaluate cross-border opportunities in Asia,” said Roy Kuan, managing partner of CVC Asia, in the statement.

Some retail sector investments have worked well for CVC Asia Pacific. In March, the firm sold 40 percent of Indonesia-based Matahari Department Stores in a deal worth $1.3 billion. The exit provided a return in the range of 7x-8x, an industry source told Private Equity International.   

The firm is currently fundraising for its fourth Asia vehicle targeting $3.3 billion. In December, it held a first close on $2 billion, PEI reported earlier