Amer Sports is moving further into the action sports market with the acquisition of Nikita, the Icelandic brand of boardsports and lifestyle apparel focusing on women. Amer Sports is already involved in action sports through Salomon snowboards and Bonfire apparel.
The move fits with the Finnish sports group's strategy to invest more in apparel and footwear. Nikita, which was established in 1998, reaches annual sales of about €8 million, mostly in Europe, and with some distribution in North America and Asia.
Amer bought Nikita from its three founders: Runar Omarsson, general manager; Heida Birgisdóttir, head designer; and Valdimar Hannesson, chief executive of Nikita Europe, which is based in Germany. Another significant shareholder was the NSA fund, which was set up by a government-owned pension fund to stimulate Icelandic business development.
The sale will provide more funds for the brand to expand its product range in the boardsports market and to widen its distribution. Omarsson said that Nikita had been somewhat held back in the last years by its isolation in Iceland and the small size of its infrastructure, compared with rivals who are often part of much larger companies. All three founders are to stay on board.
Nikita is to be integrated into a new division for action sports products, under the provisional name of A2. Hannesson will help to implement the integration of Nikita's operations with others in the Amer Sports group, both in Europe and in the U.S. market. The transaction will not have any significant impact on the financial performance or balance sheet of the Finnish company for this year.
