Swiss investor bids for Club Med majority stake
The owner of Swiss department store brand Manor, Maus Frères, has offered to buy a majority stake in the French holiday resort operator Club Med. But Club Med owner, the Chinese conglomerate Fosun, has rejected the bid.
“The purchase offer has not yet been accepted,” said a Swiss Club Med representative when asked by the AWP news agency about an article in the French newspaper Les Echos.
However, the French company and the Geneva-based Maus Frères are still in talks, added the spokesperson. Other purchase offers are also being examined. Maus Frères has not yet commented.
The holiday resort operator is primarily looking for minority investors, as Club Med boss Henri Giscard d’Estaing said last September. An opening for strategic minority partners alongside the main shareholder Fosun cannot be ruled out. The aim is to strengthen Club Med’s development and growth potential.
According to Les Echos, a minority investor with a stake of around 20 to 30% would be welcome. This would result in a company value of around €2 billion (CHF1.9 billion).
There are already connections between the two groups: there is a collection of Lacoste clothing with the Club Med logo.
Maus Frères has cleaned up its Swiss portfolio in recent years: the Athleticum sports stores were sold to French competitor Decathlon and the Jumbo hardware store chain was sold to Coop. For its part, Fosun recently sold the Zurich Grasshopper Club Football to the Los Angeles football club.
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