Accell Group N.V. has signed a letter of intent for the acquisition of Juncker B.V. in Veenendaal, a company which trades in bicycle parts and accessories. The acquisition is an important step for Accell Group in the Dutch bicycle parts and accessories market and is in line with the company's strategy aimed at further expansion in this area. The acquisition will be financed from the company's own resources and will make an immediate positive contribution to Accell Group's earnings per share.
The expansion of trade in bicycle parts and accessories was started in 2001 with the acquisition of German bicycle manufacturer Winora Group. Part of Winora Group is the separate bicycle parts and accessories trading operation BikeParts. In the Netherlands, Juncker has the exclusive distribution rights for a number of high-quality brands and, like Accell Group, its main clients are specialist bicycle shops. Juncker will cooperate with BikeParts in key segments.
René Takens, Chairman of the Board of Accell Group said, “Juncker is one of the biggest players in bicycle parts and accessories in the Netherlands and exclusive distributor of a number of high-quality brands. The distribution channels overlap to a large extent with those of our bicycles. The cooperation with BikeParts in Germany offers synergy benefits in fields such as portfolio management, logistics and purchasing. Therefore, in several respects, the acquisition is an important step towards the growth we seek in these trading activities in Western Europe, particularly in the Netherlands and Germany. We expect to complete the acquisition in the near future.”
Juncker is a trading company with a broad range of bicycle parts and accessories in the Netherlands. Juncker, with its head offices in Veenendaal, supplies products to virtually all specialist bicycle stores in the Netherlands and thus has an extensive dealer network. The company employs around 40 people and booked turnover of around EUR 13 million in 2003.
