Arca Space Capital acquires control of Rogelfrut, the Italian leader in fruit-based ingredients for artisanal gelato
Milan, 29 May 2026
Space Capital Advisors and Arca Fondi SGR, in the name and on behalf of the Arca Space Capital fund, announce the closing of the acquisition of Rogelfrut ("Rogelfrut" or the "Company"), an Italian leader in the production and distribution of fresh and frozen fruit-based ingredients, including purees and juices, IQF (Individually Quick Frozen) fruit, dried fruit and other fruit-based references, primarily intended for the artisanal gelato channel.
The transaction, completed today, was carried out through Rover 2 S.p.A., a vehicle controlled by Arca Space Capital, with the reinvestment of historical shareholders Renato Bottasso and Gianpiero Boretto, who will continue to hold an aggregate stake of approximately 15% in the Company and to support the new development path.
The investment represents the fifth transaction of the Arca Space Capital fund which, launched in 2023 by Arca Fondi SGR in partnership with the Space Capital Advisors team, confirms its positioning in supporting Italian centres of excellence with strong growth prospects.
Rogelfrut: nearly fifty years of leadership in fruit-based ingredients
Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Rossana (Cuneo), Rogelfrut is the leading Italian operator in the production of fruit-based ingredients for artisanal gelato, a segment in which it holds a leadership position. The Company serves more than 850 customers in over 35 countries, including specialised distributors, gelato chains, artisanal laboratories and industrial clients, through a portfolio of more than 550 references and over 50 fruit varieties.
Rogelfrut operates one production plant in Italy and a logistics platform consisting of five refrigerated warehouse sites in Italy, Germany and France, ensuring continuity of supply, production flexibility and timely delivery despite the natural seasonality of raw materials.
In 2025, revenues amounted to Euro 33 million, with exports representing more than 35% primarily in Germany, France and Switzerland. The Company's EBITDA margin was approximately 18%, and its workforce numbers around 70 employees.
The industrial project: organic growth and M&A
The growth plan elaborated by Arca Space Capital together with the management is built around two complementary pillars:
- organic growth, through targeted investments to expand production capacity, strengthen the industrial and logistics platform, broaden the product range and reinforce the commercial structure, with particular focus on international markets;
- external growth, through an M&A programme aimed both at penetrating new geographic markets and at expanding the product portfolio into adjacent categories, contributing to the creation of an industrial platform in the market for ingredients for artisanal gelato, pastry and F&B channels.
Governance and management
Luca Testa has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Rogelfrut to lead the new industrial journey. Luca Testa brings a solid managerial background, with extensive experience in strategic consulting, most recently at Boston Consulting Group, where he developed strong know-how in the B2B world and in Operations.
Luca Testa will be supported by Aldo Uva as industry expert, a senior manager with decades of experience in the food sector, particularly in gelato and pastry ingredients, gained in leading international groups.
Together with the four members appointed by Arca Space Capital, Renato Bottasso and Gianpiero Boretto will join the Board of Directors, ensuring continuity of industrial, sourcing and relationship know-how.
Statements
Carlo Pagliani and Alfredo Ambrosio, Partners of Space Capital Advisors, commented:
"Rogelfrut is a unique industrial story, built over nearly fifty years by the Bottasso and Boretto families, and today the leader in the segment of fruit-based ingredients for Italian artisanal gelato. Leveraging the brand's strong market positioning, the quality of its product portfolio and its distinctive logistics model, we will support management in building an industrial platform able to best serve a market characterised by favourable structural trends, both in Italy and abroad."
Ugo Loeser, CEO of Arca Fondi SGR, stated:
"The investment in Rogelfrut is perfectly consistent with the mission of Arca Space Capital: to support Italian SMEs of excellence with distinctive positioning, a solid industrial base and significant growth potential, both domestically and internationally. The transaction confirms the fund's pace of execution and the quality of its pipeline."
Luca Testa, CEO of Rogelfrut, stated:
"I join Rogelfrut with great enthusiasm, aware that I am taking over the baton of an Italian centre of excellence that, in nearly fifty years, has built recognised leadership in its reference market thanks to product quality, breadth of catalogue and a reputation as a reliable partner for the world of artisanal gelato. The industrial project we share with Arca Space Capital and with the entrepreneurs rests on three clear pillars: strengthening our presence in the Italian market and accelerating growth abroad, expanding the product range also through M&A transactions, and further enhancing production and distribution performance."
Gianpiero Boretto and Renato Bottasso concluded:
"We are proud of the journey Rogelfrut has made and of the positioning achieved thanks to the work of all the people in the Company and to the trust of our customers. The entry of Arca Space Capital represents an important step to give further impetus to the Company's growth while preserving its identity, product quality and customer focus."
Advisors on the transaction
Arca Space Capital was assisted by BPER Corporate & Investment Banking as M&A Advisor, Ropes & Gray as legal counsel, L&B Partners as financial advisor, BIP for financial and tax due diligence, ERM for ESG due diligence and Russo De Rosa Associati (RDRA) for the structuring of the transaction.
Rogelfrut was assisted by Meti Corporate Finance as financial advisor, MDT Studio Legale as legal counsel and Andersen for financial and tax due diligence.
The transaction was supported by a pool of banks led by BPER Banca C&IB (acting as agent bank, Bookrunner and MLA), Banca Sella and Cherry Bank (both acting as Bookrunner and MLA); Orrick acted as legal advisor to the banks.
ARCA SPACE CAPITAL
Arca Fondi SGR, founded in 1983, is today one of the leading players in the Italian asset management industry, thanks to the quality of its products and services. With assets under management that reached Euro 50 billion in 2024, Arca Fondi SGR is a leader in Individual Savings Plans (PIR), in the Target Date Funds, Open Pension Funds and ESG investment segments. Arca's products are distributed through a broad and widespread network which, thanks to consolidated partnerships with more than 50 banks and financial institutions, counts more than 4,500 branches. Since 2019, Arca has been part of the BPER Banca Banking Group.
Arca Space Capital is the private equity fund born from the partnership between Arca Fondi SGR and Space Capital Advisors, with a size of Euro 206 million. To date, the fund has completed five investments: RINA (a leading operator in the testing, inspection and certification sector), Mosaiq Group (packaging for the luxury and fashion sectors), Eurosirel (a leader in wound care and cosmetic masks), Unifarco (scientific dermo-cosmetics for the pharmacy channel) and, most recently, Rogelfrut.
Space Capital Advisors is the company established by partners Carlo Pagliani, Edoardo Subert, Alfredo Ambrosio, Laura Selvi and Alessandro Grassi, dedicated exclusively to the Arca Space Capital initiative. Since 2013, the Space team has promoted the establishment of four SPACs for an aggregate total of approximately Euro 1 billion, which have brought to the STAR segment of Borsa Italiana four companies that are leaders in their respective sectors (FILA, Avio, Aquafil and Guala Closures). In 2019, the Space team launched a club deal platform, which has carried out two private equity investments in SMEs (Adler Ortho and Bruno Generators Group), for a total value of approximately Euro 100 million, with the aim of supporting entrepreneurs in the growth journey of their companies.