K2 goes big with acquisition of Volkl
Written by Dan Morgan, Tuesday, 22 June 2004“Carlsbad, California – June 16, 2004 - K2 Inc. (NYSE: KTO) announced the signing of three definitive acquisition agreements in which Völkl Sports Holding AG, The Marker Group and Marmot Mountain Ltd. would become wholly owned subsidiaries of K2. The transactions, which are subject to regulatory review and other customary conditions, are expected to be completed by mid-July, 2004. K2 indicated that it expects the transactions to be accretive to its earnings in 2004 and subsequent years.”
We are now in an era of the ski retail industry where it seems that mergers and acquisitions of this nature are now inevitable as the number of skis sold each year continues to slide. Integrated ski & binding setups are still proving to be fruitful and the consolidation of Marker, K2 and Volkl is hardly surprising when you assess the current partnership situation. Marker already supplies both Volkl and K2 with the ability to sell integrated ski and binding packages.
“The ski business is increasingly driven by a few global players with integrated ski and binding systems, and this transaction will solidify K2’s leading position on a global basis. K2, Volkl and Marker are leading authentic brands and together they will constitute the most unique and powerful winter products platform in the industry today,” said Richard Heckmann, K2’s chairman and chief executive officer.
“The addition of Volkl and Marker’s strong European management team gives us a unique opportunity to combine our significant European operations for the benefit of both customers and employees. Volkl’s outstanding heritage of German engineering excellence will be a strong addition to our worldwide product offering in the ski industry as will their superb manufacturing facilities.”