Investcorp halts POC Sports sale as offers miss expectations

Christel Thunell , Auri Aittokallio and Johannes Koch
16 September 2022

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Investcorp has put the sale of portfolio company POC Sports on hold, two sources familiar with the situation said.

Offers for the Swedish sports safety equipment provider did not reach the sell side's expectations, one of the sources said, adding that the process had progressed to final bids and then revised final bids.

There had been three bidders left in the race, two of which shared pole position, while one was struggling to keep up, the same source said. The bidders were a mix of private equity, a sponsor-backed peer and a trade buyer, the source added.

Rothschild had been retained as the sellside adviser, as reported.

Investcorp could relaunch the process next year, one of the sources said.

The asset had been marketed off around an estimated EUR 17m EBITDA and EUR 108m sales for 2022, as reported. POC Sports reported EUR 6m in 2020 EBITDA on EUR 55m sales, with the jump in the figures attributed to a boost the company experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, as reported.

POC Sports' performance has held up well, but it is a tough climate to sell consumer-facing businesses, one of the sources said, adding that the business derives approximately 80% of its revenue from cycling gear and 20% snow sports gear. The snow business has recently performed better but the cycling side has dragged on performance somewhat, said the source.

A sponsor executive tracking the situation agreed an added that, following a COVID-19 boom, sales in the core product segments of bikes, scooters, and the like have fallen off highs.

Given their previous experience in the sector, Altor and Bridgepoint would be logical buyers for POC Sports, this executive said.

Carlyle, which recently acquired Italian motor gear business Dainese from Investcorp, had shown interest, a sector banker said. But this banker cautioned that Investcorp had tried and failed to fit POC Sports and Dainese together, finding there were no synergies.

Investcorp acquired POC Sports from Black Diamond in 2015 for USD 65m. POC Sports was established in 2004.

Investcorp declined to comment. POC Sports, Rothschild and Carlyle did not respond to requests to comment.