Advent spins out Christ to 3i

According to reports, 3i invested €214m in equity, while the enterprise value of the deal is reported to be around €400m.

The divestment comes two years after Advent took Douglas private, having acquired a majority stake in the group from its owners, the Kreke family.

Following the acquisition, 3i plans to expand Christ's store network and boost the company's e-commerce offering. The GP also intends to help Christ expand into foreign markets outside of the immediate vicinity of its German base.

Since Advent's acquisition, Douglas has focused on its beauty division and bought French perfume chain Nocibe, while selling its Hussel confectionery shops.

Advent reportedly plans to sell or list Douglas on the Frankfurt stock exchange as early as H1 of 2015.

Previous funding
Advent bought Douglas in October 2012, having circled the company for almost a year. The take-private valued the company at around €1.5bn.

The deal saw previous majority shareholders, the Kreke family, take a 20% stake in the newco, Al Beauty, after the takeover was completed.

Company
Based in Hagen, Christ is a jewellery and watch retailer in the mid-to-upper price segment, with revenues of around €400m last fiscal year. It currently has 220 stores and 2,400 employees.

Having expanded outside of its native Germany last year, the company now also has operations in Austria.

Though its former parent, Douglas, was established in 1949, Christ's history goes back to 1863 when it was founded in Frankfurt.

People
Peter Wirtz, partner and managing director of 3i Germany, led the deal for the GP. Bernd Schröder is the CEO of Christ, while Henning Kreke represented the Kreke family in the deal.

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• DACH
• Consumer
• Germany
• Advent International
• 3i