LG Harris acquired by Orkla

Through its wholly owned subsidiary Orkla House Care Norge AS, Orkla has entered into an agreement to purchase L.G. Harris & Co. Limited (“Harris”), a leading supplier of Do-It-Yourself painting tools in the UK. With this acquisition, Orkla House Care is doubling the size of its operations.

Harris is a market leader for painting tools in the UK Do-It-Yourself (DIY) market, with well-known brands such as Harris, Lynwood, Harris Victory and T-Class. The majority of the company’s sales are made in the UK market, but there is also some export business.

“With well-established brands and solid customer relations, Harris holds a leading market position in the UK. Orkla House Care and Harris are a good fit. With the acquisition of Harris, Orkla House Care is significantly strengthening its presence in the UK and expanding its portfolio in the DIY market,” says Bjørn Drabløs, CEO of Orkla House Care.

Orkla House Care owns the Jordan, Anza, Spekter and Hamilton brands. Orkla House Care is a leading supplier of painting tools in the Nordic region and in the professional market in the UK, and is one of Europe’s largest painting tool manufacturers.

Harris owns two factories, one is located in Stoke Prior, Bromsgrove, outside Birmingham (UK), and the other is located in Zhaoqing City in Guangdong Province (China). In total, Harris has almost 1,000 employees. The company’s head office is in Bromsgrove.

Harris also owns 50% of a joint venture with a local partner in India, serving the Indian market. Furthermore, the company has a minority shareholding in a painting tool manufacturer in Sri Lanka

Harris uses split financial year running from July to June for their accounts. For the latest 12 months per March 2016, Harris achieved total sales revenues of GBP 60.9 million (approx. NOK 718 million) and EBITDA of GBP 5.7 million (approx. NOK 67 million) (unaudited figures).

Harris was founded in 1928 and is owned by the Harris family, together with the company’s management and employees. The parties have agreed on a purchase price of GBP 55 million (on a debt-free basis) (approx. NOK 648 million).

The agreement is contingent on the approval of the UK competition authorities.

Orkla is a leading supplier of branded consumer goods and concept solutions for the consumer, out-of-home and bakery markets in the Nordic and Baltic regions and selected markets in Central Europe and India. Orkla is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange and its head office is in Oslo, Norway. In 2015, the Group had a total turnover of approximately NOK 33 billion, and 14,670 employees at year end.

The business area Orkla Care comprises five branded consumer goods businesses which primarily serve home markets in the Nordic region. The business units in Orkla Care are Orkla Home & Personal Care (detergents and personal care products), Lilleborg Profesjonell (full-range supplier of hygiene and cleaning solutions), Orkla Health (dietary supplements and health products), Pierre Robert Group (basic textiles for men, women and children) and Orkla House Care (painting tools and household cleaning products).

Source : Orkla Press Release
www.orkla.com

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