Garmin Ltd. has signed a letter of intent for the proposed acquisition of Sportmanship International AB (“Sportmanship”), the distributor of Garmin’s consumer products in Sweden. Financial terms of the transaction were not released. Following the acquisition, Sportmanship is expected to change its name to Garmin Sweden AB. The company will retain its management, sales, marketing and supporting staff, consisting of approximately 28 people.


Dr. Min Kao, chairman and CEO of Garmin Ltd., said “Sportmanship has been successful in making the Garmin brand the market leader in Sweden in portable navigation devices (PNDs). We anticipate that the acquisition of Sportmanship will further consolidate and expand our market-leading position in Sweden and the Nordic countries as a whole.”

Christer Johansson, managing director of Sportmanship Invest AB, the parent company of Sportmanship, said “We are proud of our success in making Garmin the leading brand of portable navigation devices in Sweden. We anticipate that the full integration of Sportmanship into the Garmin family will achieve additional efficiencies and cost savings that will benefit Sportmanship’s customers and further drive sales of Garmin products in Sweden.”


The completion of the acquisition is subject to the negotiation and execution of a definitive acquisition agreement, the completion of legal and financial due diligence and customary closing conditions. The acquisition is expected to be completed in December 2008.