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Home › Media › Releases 2006 › CapMan invests in Swedish fashion retail chain MQ

Press release - 4 April 2006

CapMan invests in Swedish fashion retail chain MQ

CapMan funds will acquire the majority holding in Swedish fashion retail chain MQ. The minority owners of the company will be the current owners through their investments, the executive management and RPE Capital Management AB. The transaction applies to MQ Sweden AB and the chain’s 89 stores in Sweden. The transfer of MQ stores wholly to the ownership of MQ Sweden AB has preceded the acquisition. The structural change strengthens MQ’s opportunities for rapid growth through the development of stores and improved efficiency of operations.

MQ is one of Sweden’s largest speciality retail chains selling fashion clothing, and it has 89 stores in different parts of Sweden. The stores’ product range comprises the chain’s own brands as well as industry branded products. MQ’s turnover in 2005 totalled approx. EUR 170 million, which was an increase of 13.8 per cent compared to the previous year. The company’s profitability has grown by 6.1 percentage points during the past three years. MQ has some 1,000 employees, of whom 65 work in the company’s head office in Borås.

MQ has previously been a retail chain composed of independent stores, from which a wholly integrated chain will be born in the transaction. The sellers in the transaction are the current storeowners, who together also own MQ Sweden AB. The new structure will strengthen the purchasing, administration and personnel of the central organisation.

”MQ’s range comprises the company’s own strong brands as well as industry branded products. The company has an experienced and professional management as well as good growth and profitability,” says CapMan Partner Göran Barsby. ”We are convinced that the prerequisites for the further development of MQ are excellent.”

”Retail markets have shown steady growth in recent years and a fashion retail chain such as MQ, due to its orientation and profile, is relatively independent of business fluctuations,” states Göran Barsby.

”The transaction is in the best interests of MQ, the company’s existing owners and the chain’s employees. CapMan as the majority owner sets the scene for the continuous development of the business. The new organisation will enable us to realise MQ’s long-term objectives more rapidly and efficiently,” comments Lars Stenberg, Managing Director of MQ Sweden AB.

The business plan for the next few years includes the opening of new stores as well as the development of retail floor space and the product range in the existing stores in Sweden.

The parties in the transaction have agreed that the transaction price will not be published. The closing of the transaction requires the approval of competition authorities.

For further information, please contact:
Göran Barsby, Partner, CapMan Buyout, tel. +46 8 545 854 79 or +46 734 40 84 87
Lars Stenberg, Managing Director, MQ Sweden AB, tel. +46 706 517 890

CapMan
CapMan is one of the leading private equity investors in the Nordic countries and specialises in middle market buyouts in various industry sectors, investments in expansion and later stage technology companies and investments in life science companies. In addition, CapMan manages private equity real estate funds. The CapMan team comprises around 90 people in Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo. CapMan manages Nordic funds with approx. EUR 2.2 billion in total capital. To date, the funds managed by CapMan have invested in 142 companies in the Nordic countries and exited from 80 companies. The latest investments are made in Finnish Flander Ltd, Danish ScanJour A/S, Swedish 42Networks AB and Norwegian InfoCare ASA. The portfolio of CapMan’s first private equity real estate fund consists of 18 commercial properties in the Helsinki metropolitan area. CapMan Plc is listed on the Main List of the Helsinki Stock Exchange.

MQ
MQ, with 89 store locations, is one of Sweden’s largest fashion retail chains selling branded apparel. MQ Sweden AB is mutually owned by the stores and it produces an integrated range, store concept and customer interface business models for the chain. MQ Sweden AB is also responsible for the foundation of new stores, store development and the store system as well as the chain’s long-term profiling and brand strategy. In 2005 there were 27.5 million customer visits to MQ stores, and the chain’s turnover was EUR 170 million. www.mq.se

RPE Capital Management
RPE Capital Management AB is a private equity investor and specialises in investments and advisory services in the Nordic retail sector. RPE invests in growth-oriented retail companies. RPE’s value creation model combines retail sector expertise, concept development and financial analysis. www.rpe.se

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