Nolan Swallowed by Shark

The French and the Italians are ganging up on the international helmet market. Nolan has been around since 1972, and is currently the sole market player to manufacture all its helmets in Italy. One of Europe’s largest helmet manufacturers, the Nolan Group cranks out over 400,000 Nolan, Grex and X-lite lids per year, from a single factory employing 360 souls. 2Ride Holding is the French buyer, manufacturers of SHARK, Bering, Bagster, Ségura and Cairn casques among many other outdoor products, and employing a work force of over 1000.

PRESS RELEASE

May 16, 2019

With the consent of antitrust authorities, the 2Ride Holding Group has confirmed its acquisition of the Nolan Group.

As a result, the brands Nolan, X lite, Grex and N-Com are to join with Shark, Bering, Ségura, Bagster and Cairn to form a leading player in the market of protective equipment for motorcycle riding and outdoor sports.

2Ride Holding (SHARK, Bering, Bagster, Ségura and Cairn), leader in the French market for motorcycle and outdoor accessories, and the Italian group Nolan announced that their merger had been finalized.

The creation of such a strategic alliance between these two European companies attests to their intent on making significant inroads into the global marketplace and will enable them to pursue their geographic expansion plans.

With €150 million in sales revenue and a workforce of around 1,000, the Group distributes its products in over 80 countries worldwide and enjoys a global leadership status in the market of protective equipment for motorcycle and outdoor sports.

100% of its products are conceived, designed and created in Europe, and a good majority of them are even manufactured in the European territory.

Patrick François, President of 2 Ride Holding: “We’re thrilled today to be concluding this merger. Our intent is to optimize all this Italian, French and European expertise in order to offer our global consumers more protective and easier-to-use products.

The NOLAN and SHARK brands, as well as their respective teams, both embrace the same values, dedicated to the safety of our riders, whether on a motorcycle or any other means of transportation.

As of now, our teams have begun to work together in the aim of building this future for our users.”

Alberto Vergani, President of Helmet Invest: “Today marks the successful conclusion of a lengthy process. We’re pleased to witness the initiation of a collaboration across all teams of the group. Our Italian know-how and all the hard work that went into these past 26 years will therefore carry us into a new and promising era.”

Erwann Le Ligne, Managing Director and Member of the Board of Directors of the company Eurazeo PME: “As had been announced during our collaboration last year with the 2 Ride Holding Group’s management team, this cooperation entered into with the Nolan Group serves to confirm our ambition of doubling in size over the next five years inside Europe as well as outside. This transaction will be backed by continuous efforts in innovation and moreover will strengthen both entities’ international development.”

Angèle Faugier, Member of the Board of Directors – Naxicap Partners: “Shark and Nolan are two renowned and respected brands operating in the motorcycle market and not just in Europe, but with worldwide appeal. After all these years of growth and development alongside the 2 Ride Holding Group, we’re more than ready to accompany them into this next phase.”

Transaction advisors:

The advisory team of 2 Ride Holding:

The exchanges held between these parties were initiated by the mergers & acquisitions firm Prima Merchant & Partners (Giuseppe De Lorenzo, Gianpaolo Ferrari).

About the 2 Ride Holding Group

The French group 2R Holding is specialized in “Riders” equipment across all market segments. The group has always based its development strategy on a robust capacity to innovate in pursuit of performance, state-of-the-art and safety. Through its “motorcycle” division, as represented by its 4 high-profile complementary brands (Shark Helmets, Bering, Bagster and Ségura), the group enjoys today leadership status in the global market of complete motorcycle accessories (helmets, leather goods, clothing, luggage, saddlery, etc.). Since its 2016 integration into the Cairn Group of branded accessories (skiing and cycling helmets, etc.), 2R Holding has broadened its product lines and demonstrated its strong drive to expand beyond the motorcycle segment.

About the Nolan Group

The Nolan Group is an Italian firm founded in 1972. The company successfully penetrated the market thanks to its commitment to both safety and quality coupled with a drive to innovate. The Group is currently the sole market player to manufacture all its helmets in Italy by virtue of a fully-integrated production process, extending from raw material acceptance to final product assembly. As one of Europe’s largest manufacturers of helmets, with an annual output of over 400,000 units, Nolan employs 360 and operates at a single site.

Founded nearly 50 years ago in Italy, the Nolan Group manufactures helmets under the brand names Nolan and Grex, in addition to X-lite. Alongside this activity, the Group features N-Com, which serves as in-house department dedicated to the development of communication systems.

About Eurazeo PME

Subsidiary of Eurazeo, Eurazeo PME is an investment firm dedicated to majority shareholdings in French small and medium-sized enterprises worth less than €250 million. In its capacity as long-term professional shareholder, Eurazeo PME accompanies its participations with all of the financial, human and organizational resources necessary to ensure a durable transformation and moreover assists its portfolio holdings in implementing a sustainable and, consequently, responsible form of growth. This commitment has been enshrined and rolled out via an official CSR (corporate social responsibility) policy.

Eurazeo PME posted a consolidated revenue of €1.3 billion in 2018 in accompanying the development of the following companies: 2Ride Holding, Dessange International, Léon de Bruxelles, Péters Surgical, Redspher, the MK Direct Group, Orolia, Smile, In’Tech Medical, Vitaprotech, and EFESO Consulting. These companies enjoy strong positioning in their respective markets and are being led by highly-experienced management teams.

About Naxicap

Considered among the leaders in the private capital venture sector in France, NAXICAP Partners manages capital assets worth €3.2 million. In its role as a socially conscious and responsible investor, NAXICAP Partners has established solid and constructive partnerships with entrepreneurs intent on seeing their projects through to fruition. Given that its portfolio encompasses over 50,000 employees, Naxicap considers it especially important to accompany its partner firms in their CSR initiatives. Besides 2R Holding, we are currently working closely with: House of HR, European Cargo Services, Softway Medical, BVA, Emerige, Focal, Technicis, Fitlane, Findis, Teufel, and ECF. The company’s workforce comprises 40 investment professionals across 5 offices in both France and Germany.