Kästle has a new majority shareholder from the Czech Republic, ConsilSport. It's a strategic investment for the Austrian ski company as the new controlling shareholder owns Sporten, a manufacturing company that produces about 100,000 pairs of alpine and cross-country skis annually for various brands. Part of Kästle's production will move there.
The group is owned by Tomáš Nemec, a Czech billionaire who made a fortune from the sale of his shares in the Czech Rubber Company. Its holdings include Level Sport Koncept, a company that distributes several brands of winter sports equipment in the Czech Republic. A former ski racer and a passionate skier, Nemec is reportedly planning to expand Kästle's product line from alpine skis to other categories of winter sports products and to launch a summer collection under the Kästle brand.
Founded in 1924 by Anton Kästle, the eponymous firm was acquired in 1991 by the former Benetton Sportsystem. Its operations were shut down seven years later, when the Italian group acquired Nordica. In 2007, the trademark rights were purchased by Cross Industries, an Austrian investment group managed by Rudolf Knünz.
The company was re-established in Salzburg before its return in 2015 to Hohenems, where it was located before Cross Industries took over the brand. Today, Kästle sells about 16,000 pairs of skis per year, generating total sales of €6.5 million.
Knünz decided to search for a new partner to expand the Kästle's product portfolio and to enter new markets. Thomas Nemec, founder and owner of Consil Sport, brings in financial power as well as experience in production and international distribution.
The new majority shareholder wants to focus on continuity, leaving product management, product development, the production of limited series, marketing, distribution and logistics at the company's headquarters in Hohenems, where 46 people are currently employed. Bernd Knünz, son of Rudolf Knünz, will be managing the company together with Vladimir Dusanek, chief executive of Sporten.
As previously reported in SGI Europe, Kästle will be selling customized skis from the autumn/winter 2018/19 season. They will only be available at selected retailers. The skis, which will be priced at €2,400 at retail, will be delivered to European customers in five days from the company's own production site in Austria. In the first year, Kästle will work with 10-15 retailers in Europe, mostly in the Alps. The new segment will be expanded to other markets in the future.
Kästle launched its first limited-series collection of alpine skis for the autumn/winter 2016/17 season, consisting of only one model. The second series consisted of two models and this year's series had three different ski models, each limited to 500 pairs, which are made in Austria at Kästle's own production site. The skis are priced at €1,500 for end consumers. Kästle works with 50 selected premium partners worldwide for the sale of this limited-series collection.
