Investment firm Carlyle Group has bought Italian motorcycle equipment company Dainese from Investcorp in a deal valued at $692m including debt, Investcorp said in a statement on Friday.

 Carlyle said it wanted to expand the business in China and the United States by building up Dainese’s distribution network and further deals.

“We were attracted by Dainese’s strong brand, its long history and record of innovation,” said Massimiliano Caraffa, managing director of Consumer & Retail at Carlyle Europe Partners advisory team. Meet Massimiliano Caraffa at the Private Equity Insights Italy conference on May 24 in Milan, learn more here.

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Dainese, which employs more than 1,000 people, makes protective clothing for bikers and for other sports, and also has businesses specialising in crash helmets and bikers’ boots.

Investcorp bought the company seven years ago from its founder, Lino Dainese, for 130 million euros. Under Investcorp’s ownership Dainese more than doubled its sales to 250 million euros.

Source: Reuters

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