October 11/21 11:12 am - Dorel Sells off Bicycle Holdings

Posted by Editoress on 10/11/21
 

Canadian-based conglomerate Dorel has announced that it will sell off its Dorel Sports group to Dutch-based Company Pon Holdings B.V. The deal is worth $810 million U.S. / $1 billion Canadian.

Dorel Sports is made up of three operating divisions, Cycling Sports Group, Pacific Cycle Group and Caloi that have management responsibility for a range of bicycle brands around the world, including Cannondale, Schwinn, GT, Mongoose, Charge Bikes, KidTrax and Caloi. Pon already includes the cycling brands of Gazelle, Cervélo, Focus, Santa Cruz, Kalkhoff and Faraday.

From the their announcement, Dorel says it "expects to use the net proceeds from the sale of approximately US $735 million (subject to closing adjustments) to reduce indebtedness, return capital to shareholders and for general corporate purposes. The sale of Dorel Sports is expected to close before the end of the first quarter of 2022."

The sale has been unanimously approved by Dorel's Board of Directors and is subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of applicable regulatory approvals and the absence of any material adverse changes with respect to Dorel Sports until closing. The sale is not subject to any financing conditions. The transaction will consist of the sale by Dorel of 100% of the shares of its indirect wholly owned subsidiary companies comprising Dorel Sports as well as certain related assets.

"Acting on feedback from our shareholders, Dorel embarked on a thorough review of strategic alternatives earlier this year. Our objective has consistently been to create value for our shareholders. The divestiture of Dorel Sports represents a unique opportunity to unlock value by capitalizing on strong demand for scaled assets in the bicycle segment," said Martin Schwartz, Dorel President and CEO.