Business news : German boatbuilder Bavaria explains reasons for selling Grand Soleil brand

German boatbuilder Bavaria has issued a statement following its recent decision, as reported in IBI, to separate from Grand Soleil, after two years.
                  
Grand Soleil was purchased in October 2011 out of a 'Concordato Preventivo' procedure, a consensual composition with creditors which started almost a year before.
                  
The statement reads: "The acquisition was executed on the backdrop of a recovering market after the 2008-09 recession and an ambitious development plan in terms of new products and markets.
                 
 "Grand Soleil added a strategic complementary product range to the Bavaria Group. Over €40m were invested to restructure and re-launch the company through the course of two years. These massive capital investments resulted in a far better and more efficient business: new products, improved market presence, improved dealer network and more efficient production.
                 
 "However, the boating industry is in the midst of a severe recession, particularly affecting the Italian market to which Grand Soleil is very dependent. In addition, Grand Soleil requires further investment to support its development into segments outside the 'Performance' niche and into new markets."
                  
Constantin von Bülow, CEO of Bavaria, added: “Given that our priority is and remains Bavaria, we decided not to deploy further capital into Grand Soleil. This will allow us to concentrate the efforts on Bavaria, ensuring that the company will be in the best possible strategic and operational position when the market will eventually recover.”

Source Bavaria through IBI