Yesterday, it was announced that Golfsmith International Holdings would be acquired by Canadian retail chain Golf Town for US $6.10 per share in cash. The agreement will result in the creation of the world’s largest specialty golf retailer.
Golfsmith International Holdings is a specialty retailer of golf and tennis equipment, as well as apparel and accessories for the sports, with a 45-year history and 83 stores in the United States. The company offers premier golfing equipment by brand names, as well as its own lines of proprietary merchandise and pre-owned equipment. Golf Town is Canada’s largest specialty golf retailer, with 54 stores in Canada, and 7 in the greater Boston, MA, area. Golf Town is owned by Omers Private Equity.
The acquisition represents a premium of 32.2% to 55.1% to Golfsmith stockholders, and is expected to occur during the third quarter of 2012. With the closing of the transaction, Martin Hanaka, CEO of Golfsmith, will assume the role of CEO of the combined company. Sue Gove, president, COO, and CFO of Golfsmith will become the president and COO of the combined company, and Ron Hornbaker, interim CEO of Golf Town, will assume the role of EVP-Stores.
“Golfsmith is a company that we have admired for years. This transaction will give us a formidable footprint in North America and will also provide a strong platform for future growth,” stated Don Morrison, Senior Managing Director and Canadian Country Head of OMERS Private Equity. “Together with management we look forward to enhancing the value proposition for the companies’ loyal customers.”
“We are extremely excited about this combination. Together, the businesses will have a broad multi-channel offering of retail, online, mobile and catalogue throughout North America,” added Hornbaker.
“We have been very pleased with the building momentum at Golfsmith and I am proud of the accomplishments that our team has made over the last three years in developing a solid foundation for long term growth. We hold Golf Town in the highest regard and believe them to be an ideal partner to take Golfsmith to the next stage of growth,” commented Hanaka.
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