Sweden-based brand consolidator Storskogen is reporting that five of its portfolio companies active in sports and active lifestyle have joined forces, forming a leading distributor and brand partner in the Nordics. As a group, they hope to benefit from synergies and make the necessary investments to be competitive, while also meeting external demands to remain an attractive partner for customers and brand owners.
“The Storskogen companies Ullmax, JO Sport, Tennis fashion, Racketdoktorn and On Target have merged into the joint company ASHE, which now constitutes a leading Nordic distribution, sales and marketing partner within sports and active lifestyle,” the company said in a media release. “With more than 30 global brands like Babolat, Nike, Blizzard, Dynafit, Tecnica, Ullmax, Morakniv and Gant Footwear, ASHE offers products in alpine, tennis, padel, swimming, bicycling, golf, team sports, outdoor and sport fashion.”
The individual companies are all said to be established players with extensive history in their respective segments. Their combined resources enable investments in IT systems and a central finance and marketing organization, while category-specific customer teams and salespeople maintain closeness to the market and hold extensive expertise in each area.
The merger has been a long-term, strategic initiative where two of Storskogen’s board representatives in ASHE, Jacob Sandström and Rebecca Mattsson, have transitioned to working operationally in the company as CEO and COO. This close connection between Storskogen and the companies has facilitated the process and enabled a smooth shift.
“In the sports and distribution industry, achieving scale is necessary for making the significant investments that are needed to build capacity and have competitive offers. Global brands seek partners with international reach, while also requiring niche experts that can provide insight into key trends and industries”, says Jacob Sandström. “In ASHE, we now have the scale and resources needed to be competitive, as well as broad and in-depth expertise in all our segments.”
Truls Browall, senior investment manager at Storskogen, is a member of ASHE’s board of directors and has been a driving force in previous mergers of Storskogen companies.
“As an owner, Storskogen can facilitate processes that normally are challenging for smaller companies – such as building a modern organisation with efficient functions, and enabling synergies through inventory management, purchasing and shared ERP systems. We have positive experiences from strategic mergers like this and look forward to following ASHE’s journey toward becoming an even more prominent player in the market”, says Truls Browall.
