Card Factory, a retailer of greeting cards, gifts and celebration essentials, has announced the acquisition of Garven Holdings, LLC and its subsidiaries (“Garven”) for $25 million on a cash/debt free basis (subject to customary closing adjustments).
The acquisition marks Card Factory’s physical entry into the US gifts and celebration essentials market, which represents the biggest market globally at circa £70 billion in total.
Garven has an established customer base of general and speciality retailers which will allow Card Factory to further explore design and buying synergies, alongside opportunities to introduce its own ranges into the US wholesale market.
Chief Operating Officer, Anne Schulze and Chief Financial Officer, Walter Jungbauer will continue to manage the Garven business.
Darcy Willson-Rymer, CEO, Card Factory, commented: “The acquisition of Garven is an important strategic milestone in our partnerships strategy. Together with our separate wholesale supply agreement covering over 1,100 stores across the US, it establishes a physical presence in the US market. Over a number of years, Garven has built a reputation as a trusted brand known for its quality products and impressive design capabilities, with Anne and Walter building an excellent customer proposition. We are excited to welcome the Garven team to cardfactory and look forward to building upon their existing commercial relationships, as well as forging new ones.
“International partnerships are a key component of our growth strategy. This acquisition is a key step in delivering the growth from partnerships as we guided at our Capital Markets Update in May last year. Garven represents an exciting opportunity for Card Factory to build scale in the world’s biggest celebration occasions market.”
Share