" Japan’s Citizen makes time for Prothor purchase
by Laura Board | Published March 5, 2012 at 1:45 PM
Tokyo watchmaker Citizen Holdings Co. Ltd. agreed Monday to buy Switzerland's Prothor Holding SA for an equity value of Sfr64 million ($70 million).
Prothor is the holding company for Manufacture La Joux-Perret Prototec SA, which makes mechanical components for luxury watchmakers; and for high-end watchmaker Arnold & Son SA, whose products can command six-figure prices. Citizen, which did not disclose the enterprise value of the transaction, said the deal will generate unspecified synergies.
"This step is above all to further strengthen Manufacture La Joux-Perret as an independent manufacturer of mechanical movements and components," Citizen president and CEO Mikio Unno said in a statement. "We will also utilize mechanical movements produced by Manufacture La Joux-Perret for our Swiss-made collection under our own brand and licensed brand and differentiate them from other high-price range products."
Management of Prothor, including CEO Frédéric Wenger, will remain in place.
"In combining the financial strength of the Citizen Group with the know-how of the Prothor Group in manufacturing movements, we will create an even stronger Swiss player in mechanical movements and components," Wenger said in a statement. "The strategy of the Prothor Group is to further develop its broad product offering for high-end brands and to be a long-term and reliable partner for such brands."
The target's selling shareholders are a group of more than 20 private investors including management, while its clients include some of the best-known makers of Swiss watches, including LVMH Moët-Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA's TAG Heuer; Cie. Financière Richemont SA; and Hermès International SA. In November LVMH bought Swiss watch dials maker ArteCad SA.
The transaction is a challenge to Switzerland's Swatch Group Ltd., which also makes components for third-party luxury brands, as well as its own brands, including the eponymous, brightly colored products favored by European teenagers.
Citizen had a market value of ¥172.7 billion ($2.1 billion) as of the close of trading in Japan Monday, after its shares slipped 2.1%. It had sales in the year ended March 2011 of just under ¥285 billion and net profit of ¥5.1 billion.
In 2008 Citizen bought New York-based Bulova Corp. from Loews Corp. for $250 million.
Taeko Saito led a DC Advisory Partners team, including Tosh Kojima, in advising Citizen, which took legal advice from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP. The sellers' adviser was Credit Suisse Group.
DC Advisory noted that Japanese investors acquired a total of 31 industrial businesses in Europe in 2011, a 138% increase on 2010 and more than double the levels of 2009 and 2008.
Completion of the Prothor purchase is expected in April.
Read more: Japan's Citizen makes time for Prothor purchase - The Deal Pipeline(SAMPLE CONTENT: NEED AN ID?) http://www.thedeal.com/content/consumer ... z1oQiHmcCu "
Prother maakt vgs. bronnen uurwerken voor Maurice Lacroix en Hublot.
Menno
