News briefs - Corporate and M&A – Page 45
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News briefs
Castore will move its HQ from Liverpool to Manchester
Castore will relocate its headquarters from Liverpool to 1 Central Street, part of The Albert Estate, in Manchester ’s city center, later this year. The growing British sportswear brand has signed a lease to occupy a 22,100-square-foot space within the building, spanning across five floors. OBI advised on the ...
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News briefs
A $200m valuation for Ergatta, a gamified connected rower start-up
Ergatta, a Brooklyn-based start-up that has developed a good-looking, connected home rowing machine, is the latest target of private equity in the growing home fitness market. The company, which was founded in 2019, has raised $30 million in a new funding round that gives it a $200 million valuation. Ergatta ...
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News briefs
Adidas’ basketball hub may move to Los Angeles
Adidas has decided to move its basketball operations in the U.S. from its North American campus in Portland, Oregon, to Los Angeles, according to Business Insider. The move would follow the brand’s appointment in December of Jerry Lorenzo, founder of the Fear of God brand of streetwear, as the person ...
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Kinetyx gets funding for its “kinesomic sensory insole”
Kinetyx’ director, Robin Thurston, believes that every shoe in the world will be fitted with sensors twenty years from now. The Canadian high-tech company, which was spun off by its parent, Orpyx Medical Technologies, nearly one year ago, has secured new funding for its continued R&D on a “kinesomic sensory ...
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News briefs
VF divests its occupational workwear operations
Completing a divestiture process that began in January 2020, VF Corp. has sold the occupational workwear portion of its Work segment to a subsidiary of Redwood Capital Investments for a yet undisclosed price. The deal should be closed during VF’s present quarter, which ends on June 30. The group is ...
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News briefs
American actor invests in Power Plate, playing as ambassador
Mark Wahlberg has become a shareholder of Performance Health Systems, the parent company of Power Plate, and an ambassador and consultant for the vibration training brand. The American 49-year-old actor, who has been using Power Plate for 15 years to stay slim, has already invested in other fitness-related operations including ...
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News briefs
Sequential sells Heelys for $11m
The Sequential Brands Group, which is under strong pressure to pay back its debts, said it has sold the Heelys brand of wheeled shoes to BBC International, a U.S. company specializing in children’s footwear that has been Heelys’ core licensees since 2013, when Sequential bought the brand for $5.5 million. ...
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News briefs
Snap pays $124.4 million for Fit Analytics
Snap said it has paid $124.4 million for its takeover in March of Fit Analytics, a German sizing technology company that powers solutions for retailers and brands, The American social media company gave the information in a 10-Q form filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Snap added ...
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News briefs
Anta Sports’ controlling shareholder plans to sell a 3.3% stake in the company
Anta International Group Holdings has agreed to sell a stake of about 3.26 percent in Anta Sports Products, of which it is the controlling shareholder, according to a stock exchange filing made on April 21. The sale of 88 million shares in the company for HK$11.57 billion (€1.24bn-$1.49bn) will reduce ...
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News briefs
Time2Padel plans to expand in Italy and Sweden
To meet rising international demand and orders for pádel products, CMDsport reports, Time2Padel hopes to expand its European presence this year in two key markets by opening four franchises in Sweden and 15 in Italy. The chain already has two Italian stores, in Milan and Rome. The first new franchise ...
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News briefs
UA scales back plans for its new global headquarters
Under Armour plans to have a new headquarters in place by 2025 on the 50-acre waterfront property it acquired in Port Covington, South Baltimore, from Kevin Plank in 2016. Its design takes its cues from the pandemic’s lockdowns, mixing office with home working, and scales back initial plans for nearly ...
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News briefs
Therabody acquires PowerDot, a smart muscle-stimulating device
Therabody has announced the acquisition of PowerDot, a “smart muscle stimulator” that is said to temporarily relieve muscle pain. The device uses electrical stimulation to cause muscles to contract and release. The increased blood flow helps improve muscular strength and endurance, while temporarily relieving and managing pain. PowerDot’s proprietary Smart ...
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News briefs
Completing its acquisition of Plano Synergy, Pure Fishing divests its hunting brands
Pure Fishing has announced that it has completed the acquisition of Plano Synergy Holdings. As part of the closing, Pure Fishing has also announced the sale of Plano Synergy’s archery and hunting accessories brands to GSM Outdoors. The move is consistent with Pure Fishing’s strategy that places priority on fishing, ...
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News briefs
S&P upgrades its outlook for Foot Locker
The st onger-than-expected performance of Foot Locker in the past financial year has led Standard & Poor’s to upgrade its outlook for the company from negative to stable, while affirming its BB+ issuer credit rating. Foot Locker’s leverage reached a range in the mid-1x; which was much better than the ...
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NOBULL gets PE investment to diversify from training
NOBULL, which defines itself as “a brand for people who train hard and don’t believe in excuses,” has received an unspecified investment from Exeter Capital, a new private equity firm in Boston, to help it to grow and expand its product line. The company, which recently took over the sponsorship ...
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News briefs
Macron gets involved in digital fitness
Macron has announced a three-year apparel partnership with Fitbook, a virtual community for fitness trainers to promote and manage activities, information and events related to the world of fitness. While Macron specializes in the development and sale of team sports jerseys, it is based in the Italian city of Bologna ...
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SmartFlex paddings change ownership
G-Form has been acquired by a Greenwich, Connecticut-based investment company, Eldridge Industries. Details of the purchase price were not disclosed. G-Form is known for its patented SmartFlex impact protection technology used for a variety of team sports including baseball, soccer, field hockey and basketball as well as action sports such ...
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News briefs
Li & Fung launches digital incubator as a separate company
Li & Fung, the sourcing giant headquartered in Hong Kong, is launching LFX, a new and separate company designed to capitalize on new digital opportunities that can transform the retail industry and enable sustainability along the supply chain. Described as “an incubation, investment and operating platform,” LFX will launch and ...
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News briefs
Asos issues a £500 million convertible bond
After its publication of excellent results for the first half ended Feb. 28, Asos announted an offer to sell £500 million (€577.5m-$686.6m) in senior unsecured guaranteed convertible bonds due in 2026. The bonds are being offered by the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary Cornwall. The proceeds will be used by the U.K.-based ...
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Sports Direct’s parent company warns Covid-19 could cost more than £200 million
Frasers Group, the parent company of Sports Direct, has warned that it could take a hit of more than £200 million (€230m-$275m) due to Covid-related restrictions. This would be double the previous estimate it had made in February, when the company said it expected that the pandemic crisis would determine ...