Mazzone Industry Insights: Labels

Acquisitions in the Label Market have been on a tear for the last five to ten years, with Mazzone’s tracked transaction volumes increasing from 30 in each of 2018 and 2019 to a peak of 70 transactions in 2021. 2022 activity retreated -7%, roughly in line with Packaging Overall (-9%) and relatively resilient as compared to transactions across the broader economy (-20%).

The cooling off reflects increases in inflation and interest rates as well as fears of recession (please refer to Mazzone’s Winter 2023 Global Packaging Insights). This is particularly evident in the quarterly data: in the six quarters beginning Q1-21, the average transaction count was 18.5; each of the last three quarters ending March 2023 had “only” 12 transactions (-35%).