Polaris Private Equity has signed an agreement to acquire Louis Poulsen Lighting, a supplier of architectural lighting, and the company’s subsidiaries.
Louis Poulsen manufactures and sells lighting fixtures – including the iconic “PH” lamps – to private consumers and professionals.
The company’s current owner – Italian Targetti Sankey Group – acquired Louis Poulsen in 2007 from shareholders including Polaris, which had owned the company since 1999.
“We are pleased that, in Polaris, we have a financially strong owner with extensive knowledge of our business and the ability to give Louis Poulsen the best conditions for focusing on continued development of the company and our unique products. We have created a stronger company in recent years through dedicated efforts to streamline production and improve the quality level – and with Polaris on board, we are now prepared to put growth on the agenda again,” says Søren Schøllhammer, vice president at Louis Poulsen.
Louis Poulsen’s day-to-day management team will continue unchanged. The company employs 450 staff with headquarters located in Copenhagen. The majority of the company’s around 300 Danish employees work in the company’s production facility in Vejen, where 217,000 units were manufactured in 2013.
Louis Poulsen’s 2013 revenue is expected to come to around EUR90m, of which approximately 70 per cent derives from international sales.
”Louis Poulsen is a well-run business with strong development competencies, efficient and highly specialised production processes, and a prominent brand in Denmark and internationally. The company’s unique products and status as a design icon is a strong foundation for further growth, and we are looking forward to contributing to its development in the coming years, where we will ensure that Louis Poulsen is given the right conditions for realising the company’s significant potential,” says Allan Bach Pedersen, partner at Polaris.
The agreement is subject to customary approvals, and the parties have agreed not to disclose the acquisition price.
