Deal Announcement 05/20: Retail & Consumer

The Deal

The PwC M&A team is pleased to announce the successful sale of Planet Sports GmbH (“Planet Sports”) to a group of private investors. Planet Sports is a leading German omnichannel sports retailer. While Planet Sports achieved strong topline growth in recent years, the company faced liquidity shortage and over-indebtedness end of February 2020 and had to file for insolvency. Axel W. Bierbach of Müller-Heydenreich Bierbach & Kollegen was appointed as (preliminary) insolvency administrator of Planet Sports and initiated a structured, international sale process which was led by PwC M&A. In the course of the investor process the operating business and major assets of Planet Sports were acquired by a group of private investors.

Planet Sports GmbH

Planet Sports, headquartered in Munich, is one of the leading addresses for boardsports and streetwear. The company offers exclusive brands for on-trend apparel, shoes, accessories and equipment for snow, skate and surf sports. Sales are mainly generated through Planet Sports’ well established online shop www.planet-sports.com. In 2019, Planet Sports generated revenues of approx. €75m.

Müller-Heydenreich Bierbach & Kollegen

The law firm Müller-Heydenreich Bierbach & Kollegen (www.mhbk.de) is a partnership of attorneys in Munich and other Bavarian cities that has been specializing in restructuring and insolvency administration for many years. A total of six insolvency administrators handle insolvency proceedings at several local courts in Bavaria and Thuringia. In addition to transferring restructuring, the law firm’s particular strengths includes insolvency plan proceedings, self-administration and group insolvencies.

PwC

The global PricewaterhouseCoopers network is a worldwide association of independent auditing and consulting companies which together employ more than 250,000 people in 158 countries. Our global network comprises nearly 1,550 M&A professionals all over the world, realising approx. 400 successful transactions per year. We specialise in a wide range of independent M&A services including advice on acquisitions and disposals, mergers, public takeovers, privatisations as well as structured financing.

The transaction was led by Timo Klees (Partner) and Fabian Dalka (Senior Manager) and supported by Lukas Filippinetti (Senior Associate) and Felix Lenk (Senior Associate).