Intersport Sweden gets new owners as Adelis Equity Partners, a Swedish investment firm, divests its majority ownership to a consortium consisting of management, the board of directors, existing minority shareholders and new investors – including former and current Intersport dealers. With this new ownership structure, Intersport will have enhanced opportunities to invest in the future and continue its journey towards creating Sweden’s most inspiring sports destination.
Adelis bought 70 percent of Intersport Sweden in June 2015, focusing from the outset on transforming the voluntary group into an integrated retailer with about 100 stores to become wholly owned, which has now been achieved. The other 50 stores continue to operate as franchisees.
Under Adelis’ ownership, Intersport has undergone a fundamental transformation, having developed a digital commerce platform for a modern omnichannel supported by a new automated central warehouse while, at the same time, fending off the challenges of the pandemic. This has established Intersport as a leading sports chain in Sweden with a strong customer offering that has defied industry headwinds in recent years, grown profitably and, above all, laid the foundation for continued growth.
“It has been many years of hard work, and we are especially grateful to Pontus [Petersson], Niclas [Eriksson] and the rest of the management team for their strong efforts under our joint ownership. We are pleased to hand over the baton to owners with industry experience, including both existing and new investors,“ said Erik Hallert at Adelis.
“I am very proud of what we have achieved since Adelis invested in 2015, first by creating the group and then by digitizing the company and its customer offering. It is therefore very gratifying to have the continued trust of our new owners – and especially to benefit from their entrepreneurial experience. We have only just begun,” commented Pontus Petersson, the CEO of Intersport Sweden.
“Intersport is a long-standing and well-managed company with a strong position in the Swedish sports market. With Adelis as the main owner, we have fundamentally transformed Intersport, and today we are stronger than ever in meeting customers with an offer and knowledgeable employees. We look forward to continuing the growth journey with our new owners,” added Niclas Eriksson, Chairman of the Board of Intersport Sweden.
According to Steve Evers, CEO of Intersport International Corporation (IIC), the new owners instill international confidence. “Intersport in Sweden has seen a remarkable transformation during Adelis’ ownership. We are very confident that the new consortium, with its deep industry expertise and passion, will continue to drive our brand to new heights, and we look forward to seeing Intersport further strengthen its position based on the solid foundation that has been established,” Evers said.
Intersport Sweden is one of the country’s leading sports chains and has been present in Sweden since 1968. Today, the chain has about 100 stores throughout the country, e-commerce and the company also operates Sweden’s largest specialist chain for running, Löplabbet.
Intersport has a turnover of SEK 2.6 billion (€226.5m) and is part of Intersport International, the world’s largest sports chain with a turnover of SEK 120 billion (€10.4bn) in 57 countries.
