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Activa Capital invests in French sports brand Look

Activa Capital has taken a majority stake in Look Cycle, alongside the existing owners, Dominique Bergin and Thierry Fournier, with the aim of accelerating the brands expansion in France and internationally.

As the inventor and a world leader in clipless pedals, Look Cycle capitalises on 30 years of experience at the highest sporting level; as a leader in the field of carbon technology, Look Cycle also designs and manufactures exceptional bikes.

With a turnover of EUR45 million and around 400 professionals, Look is one of the most innovative French companies in the cycle sector. The company assigns more than 10 per cent of its turnover to research and innovation with a portfolio of over 230 patents. Look has been awarded the trophy for the most innovative company in the sports sector in France. 

On 2 July, Look will participate in the Tour de France with the Fortuneo-Vital Concept team, riding the Look 795 Light and will equip nine of the top teams of the Tour (Tinkoff, Movistar, Lotto Soudal, Astana, AG2R La Mondiale, Katusha, Furtuneo-Vital Concept, Cofidis, Direct Energie). Alberto Contador and Peter Sagan will be at the starting line with personalised Kéo Blade 2 Look pedals. The Astana cycling team will ride with both Corima wheels and Look pedals.

After the Tour de France, Look will again be very present at the Rio Olympics Games with more than 80 bikes in competition. Look is the long-time partner of the French Cycling Federation, as well as those of Canada, Russia and Germany. Look also partners with the Chinese Cycling Federation which has chosen to equip its athletes with Look bikes (while 95  per cent of carbon bikes sold worldwide are manufactured in Asia).

With the arrival of Activa Capital, Look intends to capitalise on its strong position in Europe to accelerate its growth and its international development, in a sector which is enjoying sustainable growth. Look already generates 75 per cent of its turnover outside France.

In association with Activa Capital, Look will accelerate its growth and play a key role as a consolidator in this market. The recent build-up of CORIMA, leader in the design and manufacture of carbon wheels (January 2016), is an example of the strong opportunities in the cycling market.

Dominique Bergin, President of Look, says: “Look has many development projects and we wanted the support of a highly reputable financial partner. We are pleased to welcome Activa Capital with whom we share a common growth vision for our brand.”

Charles Diehl, Partner at Activa Capital, says: “we were attracted by this resolutely dynamic and innovative family business and have built a strong relationship over the past 18 months with the management team. We are particularly pleased to be partners in the next phase of Look’s development, and to support this iconic sports brand in accelerating its international growth.”

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