Louisville Slugger was purchased in '15 for $70M by Amer SportsGETTY IMAGES
A Chinese investor group led by Anta Sports Products reached a $5.2B deal to "acquire the maker of Wilson tennis rackets and Louisville Slugger baseball bats," according to Jeff Sutherland of BLOOMBERG NEWS. The consortium includes Chinese buyout firm FountainVest Partners and will "offer shareholders of Finland's Amer Sports Oyj" at about $45.50 a share in cash. Other minority investors in the group include Lululemon Athletica Founder Chip Wilson and Chinese internet company Tencent, which has streaming deals with the NBA and NHL. Anta is China's "biggest athletic-apparel producer" and is seeking "acquisitions of well-established global brands as it works to increase its business overseas." Amer's portfolio includes Salomon ski boots, Arc'teryx outdoor gear and Atomic winter gear, and that is an "attractive prospect for Anta" ahead of the '22 Beijing Games (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 12/7). Amer Sports bought Louisville Slugger in '15 for $70M "in a deal that rattled the increasingly global sporting goods industry" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 12/8).
