Text|Ma Lian Hong.
Xtep Group has just announced the acquisition of the Saucony joint venture and 40% of the intellectual property rights in China, and the next day there is another bombshell news:
Lionrock Capital Limited, a global private equity firm, has agreed to acquire a 100% stake in the Nordic outdoor brand Hagl FS AB from ASICS Corporation. According to the relevant announcement, the transaction was completed through a ** managed and operated by Lionrock Capital GP Limite, and Li Ning is the company's non-executive chairman.
The transaction marks the first acquisition of a clothing company specializing in outdoor sports by Lane Capital, and it also means that the Li Ning family has ushered in a new brand in addition to Li Ning, its own light luxury fashion brand LNG, as well as the previously acquired Hong Kong clothing brand Bossini, Italy's century-old luxury brand Tishoni, and the British century-old footwear brand Clarks.
The Nordic century-old outdoor brand HAGL FS is exported to 28 countries.
Nordic is the most developed area of outdoor sports in the world, and its outdoor activities have a long history of development, which has also made the Nordic region born a large number of world-renowned outdoor products companies from a very early stage, and HAGL FS is one of the significant representatives.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the logging industry was rapidly emerging in the small town of Dalstugan in Sweden's Tors Ng region due to the abundance of forests, but the workers lacked basic equipment, so local artisan Victor Hagl F decided to hand-sew some backpacks for sale. In the spring of 1914, after sewing the first backpacks in his cabin, Victor Hagl FS rode his bicycle and began to market them to the workers and farmers around the town, and the backpacks were extremely popular ......Thus the HAGLOF brand was born. The tools and cabins that Victor Hagl FS used to make backpacks have also been preserved to this day as a precious memory of the history of Hagl FS, which is still headquartered in Tors NG.
A wooded hut in Tors Ng and the first tools used to craft backpacks.
Today, HAGL FS is one of the largest outdoor brands in Sweden and one of the largest manufacturers and suppliers of outdoor products in the Nordic region, with a full line of outdoor equipment divided into three categories: apparel, footwear and accessories, in addition to backpacks and other accessories, HAGL FS also sells functional clothing, outerwear, hiking boots, sleeping bags, gloves and other essentials for skiers, hikers and other outdoor enthusiasts in 28 countries around the world.
In 2001, HAGL FS became a wholly owned subsidiary of Ratos AB (PUBL), a publicly traded private equity firm. On July 12, 2010, ASICS took 1$28.7 billion acquisition of HAGL FS. At that time, Haglofs's main markets were in the Nordic region and Japan, and its annual revenue in 2009 was 5900 million kroner (about 8,103 at the exchange rate at the time.)$650,000). After the acquisition, ASICS gave financial resources to accelerate global development. HAGL FS revenue has increased by **15 per year over a 5-year period8%。
This is where HAGL FS begins its globalization process. In October 2011, HAGL FS officially entered China through the authorization to Sanfo Outdoor, and its China *** officially entered the Beijing Zhuozhan Shopping Center. Due to the unique "H" brand logo of HAGL FS, its nickname of "matchstick" has also become one of the most popular brand nicknames in the domestic outdoor circle.
HAGL FS did not report its revenue in recent years, mentioning in the relevant documents that the brand's sales still increased by 11% in 2022, and profitability increased by 25%. To meet the demand, HAGL FS has invested in a new logistics center in Eskilstina, Sweden, which will be operational in spring 2023.
For the first time, it set foot in the outdoor track, and "Li Ning + multi-brand" went to the next city.
The exact amount of the acquisition was not disclosed, but the brand value of Hagl FS is much higher than in 2010 in terms of size and brand influence, which also means that Lionrock Capital GP Limit is not less than 1$28.7 billion ** acquired HAGL FS.
In a public press release, Daniel Tseung, founding partner of Lane Capital, said: "The seamless fit of matchsticks into our portfolio validates our commitment to acquiring brands with top-notch products and a long history. We are excited to embark on a new journey with the company to accelerate its growth in Europe and beyond." ”
Tom Pitts, Head of Europe at Lane Capital, added: "We have long admired the matchstick brand because it aligns with our commitment to sustainability, which is reflected in its passion for the environment and nature and its response to the climate issues we face. ”
HAGL FS currently employs 240 people and is not expected to undergo large-scale layoffs. Pitts said HAGL FS penetration is low in some parts of Europe, such as Germany and France, noting that the US is "very light". Ryan Capital has noticed Arc'teryx's expansion in the Chinese market, and although it is not a brand of the company, Arc'teryx has done an excellent job. "When we first saw Anta's acquisition of AMER (which reportedly cost $5.2 billion in 2019), we thought the valuation of their acquisition was quite overvalued. But over time, they proved that the acquisition was very well done, and the Chinese market undoubtedly led most of the brand's earnings growth. ”
In the future, Extraordinary Lingyue may become the actual owner of HAGL FS. On June 19, 2019, Lane Capital announced the establishment of Lane Capital Partnership** with Li Ning***, focusing on private equity investment in the consumer goods and sports sectors, with Li Ning as the non-executive chairman. Subsequently, in November 2020, Lane Capital acquired a majority stake in Clarks, a century-old British footwear brand, for £100 million.
The multi-brand strategy has begun to bear fruit, and Clarks has become an extraordinary "cash cow".
Since 2019, Viva Lingyue has been expanding its "multi-brand" territory, and Li Ning has personally participated in the daily management of Viva China, personally guiding the general direction from project acquisition to brand operation, including the acquisition of Clarks project. As the CEO of Viva Lingyue, Li Qilin is now also the chairman of Clarks. Interestingly, both Clarks and HAGL FS are brands named after their founders, which is the same as the Li Ning brand.
In 2022, Viva Lingyue completed the acquisition of Clarks, an internationally renowned brand, and Tishoni, a century-old Italian luxury brand. The Clarks brand has a long history and a large customer base, mainly covering the UK and US markets, as well as the Greater China region, Japan and South Korea. Tishon Tony is principally engaged in the wholesale and retail of leather goods, fashion and apparel. Through this acquisition, Viva Lingyue has added high-end luxury brands to its asset portfolio, and expanded its multi-brand footwear and apparel consumer goods network to Europe, Japan and South Korea, further expanding its business scale.
In addition to the acquisition of Clarks and Tishoni brands, Viva Lingyue has also continued to expand its well-known casual wear brand in China and Hong Kong, BossiniIn terms of product design, in addition to integrating cycling elements and upgrading sports fabrics into the brand, and developing professional sportswear categories, the brand also integrates lifestyle trend culture to develop sports fashion categories suitable for daily life. In the first half of 2023, bossinix Expansion in both the Hong Kong and China markets. As of the end of June 2023, bossinix is already in the Mainland.
More than 120 retail stores have been opened in the first and second tier cities**.
Frequent acquisitions have also brought Extraordinary Lingyue's income to a new level. According to the group's 2023 semi-annual report, the overall revenue increased by 620 compared to the same period last year due to the merger of the revenue of the famous footwear brand Clarks9% to about 54HK$400 million. Among them, Clarks has become the "cash cow" of Extraordinary Lingyue, recording a revenue of 46 in the first half of the yearHK$700 million, accounting for 85% of the Group's overall revenue8%。And bossiniX closed some of its inefficient stores in order to improve operational efficiency and gradually reduce losses.
In June this year, Viva Lingyue was transferred from GEM to the main board, bringing more capital to the group's "multi-brand" operation. With the acquisition of HAGL FS by Lane Capital, the "multi-brand" territory of the Li Ning family will also be further advanced, and HAGL FS will also reach unknown heights with the help of the new owner.
Note: The ** used in this article is from the official website of HAGL FS.