Advent's Douglas close to Nocibé deal

Greg Gille
@unquotenews
18 October 2013

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German retailer Douglas Holding, a portfolio company of Advent International, is reportedly close to acquiring French perfume brand Nocibé from Charterhouse.

The two companies are currently in final talks towards a merger, French daily Les Echos reported on Friday. The process has been underway for several months now and was believed to have stalled at the beginning of September. A deal could value Nocibé at up to €550m.

French GP LBO France, which has also been in the race for Nocibé, was understood to be contemplating a joint bid with Chinese conglomerate Fosun at the start of the summer. The private equity house is still vying for the perfume business, Les Echos added.

Charterhouse backed the €490m secondary buyout of Nocibé from Bridgepoint and TCR in 2005. The business generates a turnover of around €700m.

Advent International acquired Douglas Holding via a public tender offer last year – the deal valued the business at around €1.5bn. The German retail group operates five divisions, including the Douglas perfumeries.