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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - As cities across the country continue to explore building new or expanded sports arenas and convention centers, two of the country's major foodservice providers to those venues -- Volume Services Inc. and Stamford, Conn.-based Service America Corp. - are teaming up to serve and capture such accounts better.
The two on-site providers have agreed to combine in a deal that will create an entity named Volume Services America Inc. with 125 sports, entertainment and convention accounts and annual revenues exceeding $400 million.
The new company will be among the country's top four sports and recreation concessionaires along with Philadelphia-- based Aramark Corp., New York-based Ogden Corp. and Buffalo, N.Y.-based Sportservice Corp.
Terms of the transaction between the two privately held companies were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close by late September.
"It's a good strategic business alliance, and in this era of consolidation, it makes some sense," said John T. Dee, president and chief executive of Service America, referring to the rabid merging going on in the food management segment among giants like Sodexho USA and Marriott Management Services. "There are good efficiencies, and we can trade off of each other's strengths."
Dee, 59, will assume the title of chairman and chief executive for...