Ontario Teachers' sells Helly Hansen

The deal ends a nearly three-year holding period for Ontario Teachers' – it first acquired a majority stake in Helly Hansen in 2012, taking the firm wholly under control in August 2015.

With the fresh capital, Helly Hansen plans to increase its brand offerings in Canada and its ability to grow its brands internationally.

Helly Hansen CEO Paul Stoneham and the management team, based in Oslo, will continue to lead the business, reporting to Canadian Tire executive vice-president Mahes Wickramasinghe.

Previous funding
Investcorp acquired the company in May 1997 in a deal valued around €139m from holding firms Aker RGI and Orkla.

Altor Equity Partners wholly acquired Helly Hansen from Investcorp in December 2006. The company planned to continue growing the brand in its existing markets. 

Meanwhile Montagu Private Equity agreed to buy Helly Hansen Pro from the Helly Hansen Group in December 2010. Following an auction process, the private equity firm invested through the Montagu III fund, with management holding a stake in the business following the spin-off.

Altor sold a majority stake in the clothing retailer to Ontario Teachers', keeping a 25% shareholding, in July 2012. Ontario Teachers' acquired around 75% of Helly Hansen through its private equity investment arm Teachers' Private Capital. It intended to continue growing revenues and brand awareness outside of core European markets.

Company
Founded in 1877 and headquartered in Oslo, Helly Hansen manufactures and retails clothes and accessories, with a particular focus on skiing, sailing, outdoor activities and training.

People
Helly Hansen – Paul Stoneham (CEO).
Canadian Tire Corporation – Stephen Wetmore (CEO).

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• Topics
• Exits
• Nordics
• Consumer
• Norway
• Ontario Teachers' Private Capital
• Altor
• Trade sale