Daun Snares Spandauer Velours, Adds to Massive Textiles Portfolio
June 8, 2005
BRIARCLIFF, New York — Daun & Cie AG, a 1.6 billion Euro privately held corporate giant, has purchased the interests of The Becker Group in Spandauer Velours GmbH & Co. for "next to nothing," a source said, although the actual purchase price was not disclosed.
Spandauer, based in Lichtenstein, Germany, produces jacquard and other types of woven and printed velvet including flock upholstery fabrics.
It is also the European licensee of Crypton® by Hi-Tex.
The Becker Group was heavily involved in the apparel fabric industry before it purchased its interest in Spandauer several years ago.
Gunther Walther, president and part owner of Spandauer retired earlier this year but still manages to visit Spandauer offices every other week, monitoring his investment a source said. Michael Borofski, hired by Gunther before he retired, was named general manager of Spandauer this year and continues to manage the operation.
Daun & Cie is heavily invested in the textile industry but has diversified interests in the automotive, retail, steel, and mining industry based in South Africa. Sales of the company were $1.2 billion in 2002 with an increase of over 10% a year since then, it is estimated.
Daun owns 50 percent of the Unland GmbH textile company in Sedelsberg, Germany with the balance owned by the Unland family. In addition, the home textile companies known as Elvo and Cordima were purchased by Unland earlier this year.
The private company owned by Claas E. Daun owns as many as 1,500 separate companies and is considered extremely aggressive and efficiently run. Daun maintains a staff of 16 people in Germany who track the investments on a daily basis. It is very profitable, a source said, although no figures are ever published. Daun & Cie expects to make a public offering in the future, it is said.
Many of the companies are located outside of his base in South Africa, including Germany, Czech Republic, The Netherlands and Belgium.
Last year, Daun bought a retail garment chain, NKD in Bayreuth, Germany.
"He's still buying between five and ten companies a month," a source said.
Daun has built his business by buying companies on the verge of bankruptcy for a song and using his entrepreneurial genius to turn them around.
"I have always gone against the tide, looking for opportunities where others have given up hope," he said in a front page story in F&FI in 2002.
Spandauer, based in Lichtenstein, Germany, produces jacquard and other types of woven and printed velvet including flock upholstery fabrics.
It is also the European licensee of Crypton® by Hi-Tex.
The Becker Group was heavily involved in the apparel fabric industry before it purchased its interest in Spandauer several years ago.
Gunther Walther, president and part owner of Spandauer retired earlier this year but still manages to visit Spandauer offices every other week, monitoring his investment a source said. Michael Borofski, hired by Gunther before he retired, was named general manager of Spandauer this year and continues to manage the operation.
Daun & Cie is heavily invested in the textile industry but has diversified interests in the automotive, retail, steel, and mining industry based in South Africa. Sales of the company were $1.2 billion in 2002 with an increase of over 10% a year since then, it is estimated.
Daun owns 50 percent of the Unland GmbH textile company in Sedelsberg, Germany with the balance owned by the Unland family. In addition, the home textile companies known as Elvo and Cordima were purchased by Unland earlier this year.
The private company owned by Claas E. Daun owns as many as 1,500 separate companies and is considered extremely aggressive and efficiently run. Daun maintains a staff of 16 people in Germany who track the investments on a daily basis. It is very profitable, a source said, although no figures are ever published. Daun & Cie expects to make a public offering in the future, it is said.
Many of the companies are located outside of his base in South Africa, including Germany, Czech Republic, The Netherlands and Belgium.
Last year, Daun bought a retail garment chain, NKD in Bayreuth, Germany.
"He's still buying between five and ten companies a month," a source said.
Daun has built his business by buying companies on the verge of bankruptcy for a song and using his entrepreneurial genius to turn them around.
"I have always gone against the tide, looking for opportunities where others have given up hope," he said in a front page story in F&FI in 2002.
