06 Sep 11
Litorina’s portfolio company Björnkläder acquires Nytello AB, focused on professional white wear, and ProGozz AB, a current re-seller of the Björnkläder brand. In connection with this, Björnkläder AB changes name to Grolls AB. The acquisitions and the name change are in line with the expansion strategy as established in connection with Litorina’s acquisition of Björnkläder.
Nytello markets workwear for the care, dental, cleaning and kitchen market. Nytellos has sales of ca SEK 24 million and has nine employees.
- Nytello’s products complement our assortment of work wear and will be an important facilitator for us to reach new customer groups, says Hans Janzon, Björnkläder’s CEO.
In connection with Litorina’s acquisition of Björnkläder, a strategic expansion plan was established. The plan includes e.g. acquisitions of other complementing companies and a focus on an expansion of Björnkläder’s retail network of work wear stores, Grolls.
In line with this expansion plan, Björnkläder acquires the Uppsala based company Progozz AB – a well-established work wear store that today is a re-seller of the Björnkläder work wear range. Progozz has four employees and revenues of some SEK 5 million. Future growth for Björnkläder will be sought through a combination of Greenfield store establishments and acquisitions of established stores.
- In combination with the acquisition of Nytello, the expansion of Björnkläder’s Grolls store network really shows the market that Björnkläder has an aggressive growth strategy. We see great potential in the Nordic market for work wear and PPE, personal protection equipment, and Björnkläder really shows that they are playing a leading role in the market development, says Lars Verneholt, partner at Litorina.
In order to be clearer towards customers and suppliers, Björnkläder will in connection with these acquisitions change name from Björnkläder AB to Grolls AB, which better reflects the company’s business. Björnkläder will still be the core product line for Grolls.
- Our goal is to be a market leader in the Nordic region within work wear and PPE. I believe that a clear distinction between the manufacturing and the retail side of the business will facilitate this, says Hans Janzon.
Grolls (f k a Björnkläder) is based in Gothenburg and was founded in 1905. Today, Grolls is a leading player in the Nordic region within work wear and PPE, through the Grolls store network, consisting of 27 stores in Sweden, Finland and Estonia. Grolls owns the Björnkläder brand, one of the leading work wear brands in Sweden. For more information, see www.grolls.se
Litorina, founded in 1998, is a private equity firm that focuses on acquiring and industrially developing small to medium-sized companies, primarily Swedish, along with their leading executives. Litorina offers broad and deep expertise via its own organization as well as through its network of industrial advisors. Litorina Capital Advisors AB serves as an investment advisor for Litorina's funds. Litorina is backed by a number of future-oriented and reputable institutions that have jointly invested approximately SEK 4.8 billion in Litorina's four funds. For more information, see www.litorina.se.