Thule Group

Last updated
Thule Group AB
Company type Aktiebolag
Nasdaq Stockholm:  THULE
Industry Consumer goods
Founded Hillerstorp, Småland, Sweden (1942)
HeadquartersMalmö, Sweden Seymour, Ct
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Bengt Baron
(Board Member)
Products Car roof boxes, roof racks, bike racks, laptop and camera bags and backpacks
Revenue SEK 5,320 million (2015) [1]
SEK 825 million (2015) [1]
SEK 587 million (2015) [1]
Total assets SEK 6,899 million (2015) [1]
Total equity SEK 3,228 million (2015) [1]
Number of employees
2,200 (September 2014) [1]
Website ThuleGroup.com
Thule.com

Thule Group AB ( /ˈtl/ ) is a Swedish company that owns brands related to outdoor and transportation products. These include cargo carriers for automobiles and other outdoor and storage products, with 4,700 points of sale in 136 countries worldwide.

Contents

History

Thule was founded in 1942 in Hillerstorp, southern Sweden. The company grew steadily, especially in the 1960s when Thule specialized in roof racks and other automobile accessories helping car owners bring along their outdoor equipment and luggage. In 1979, Thule was sold to Eldon, a company listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange, which continued to develop the company. In 1999 Eldon was acquired by the private equity firm EQT Corporation and delisted. Thule was then sold to the UK-based private equity firm Candover in 2004, which embarked on several mergers and acquisitions, growing the turnover more than three times and adding new product lines such as towbars, car trailers, snow chains, RV products and bags for electronic devices.

Thule was acquired by Nordic Capital in May 2007 but forced into a restructuring in December 2008 at the height of the Global Financial Crisis, resulting in the lending bank consortium receiving an equity stake in the company. Nordic Capital acquired the remainder of the company in December 2010 and listed Thule on the Stockholm Stock Exchange in November 2014 through an IPO. [1]

Thule Group has an annual tradition of donating backpacks and school supplies to the children of Casa de la Esperanza, an award-winning housing program for migrant farm workers and their families in the US. Since 2010, Thule Group has been the main sponsor of RBU, Sweden’s National Association for Disabled Children and Adolescents.

Products

Thule is the largest and most well-known of the brands that make up the group. [2] The Thule product line includes everything from car roof boxes, bike racks, roof racks and strollers to laptop and camera bags, tablet and mobile phone cases, backpacks, luggage and roof top tents. The other brands that form the Thule Group brand portfolio are the US-founded cover and bag company Case Logic, [3] SportRack Inc., [4] the Canadian brand Chariot, [5] the Dutch company Yepp [6] and the Californian company Tepui. [7] [8]

Sportworks bike rack on a Volvo B7RLE GoBus in 2017 Bike carrier on Raglan bus.jpg
Sportworks bike rack on a Volvo B7RLE GoBus in 2017
Bus with patented bicycle carrier in use Octa-bikerack.jpg
Bus with patented bicycle carrier in use

Timeline

Related Research Articles

The Volvo Group is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distribution and sale of trucks, buses and construction equipment, Volvo also supplies marine and industrial drive systems and financial services. In 2016, it was the world's second-largest manufacturer of heavy-duty trucks with its subsidiary Volvo Trucks.

Trek Bicycle Corporation is a bicycle and cycling product manufacturer and distributor under brand names Trek, Electra Bicycle Company, Bontrager, and Diamant Bikes. The company has previously manufactured bikes under the Gary Fisher, LeMond Racing Cycles, Klein, and Villiger Bikes brand names. With its headquarters in Waterloo, Wisconsin, Trek bicycles are marketed through 1,700 independently owned bicycle shops across North America, subsidiaries in Europe, Asia, South Africa, as well as distributors in 90 countries worldwide. Nearly all Trek bicycles are manufactured outside the United States, in countries including the Netherlands, Germany, Taiwan, and China.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BEA Systems</span> Defunct American software corporation

BEA Systems, Inc. was a company that specialized in enterprise infrastructure software products, which was wholly acquired by Oracle Corporation on April 29, 2008.

Assa Abloy AB is a Swedish Group whose offerings include products and services related to locks, doors, gates, and entrance automation. Related products and services include controlling access and confirming identities with keys, cards, tags, mobile, and biometric identity verification systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AkzoNobel</span> Dutch multinational company which creates paints and performance coating

Akzo Nobel N.V., stylized as AkzoNobel, is a Dutch multinational company which creates paints and performance coatings for both industry and consumers worldwide. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the company has activities in more than 150 countries. AkzoNobel is the world's third-largest paint manufacturer by revenue after Sherwin-Williams and PPG Industries.

Beatrice Foods Company was a major American food conglomerate founded in 1894. One of the best-known food processing companies in the U.S., Beatrice owned many well-known brands such as Tropicana, Krispy Kreme, Jolly Rancher, Orville Redenbacher's, Swiss Miss, Peter Pan, Avis, Milk Duds, Samsonite, Playtex, La Choy and Dannon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halfords</span> British motoring and cycling products and parts retailer

Halfords Group PLC is a UK retailer of motoring and cycling products and services. Through Halfords Autocentre, they provide vehicle servicing, MOT, maintenance and repairs in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VF Corporation</span> American apparel company

VF Corporation is an American global apparel and footwear company founded in 1899 by John Barbey and headquartered in Denver, Colorado. The company's 13 brands are organized into three categories: Outdoor, Active and Work. In 2015, the company controlled 55% of the U.S. backpack market with the JanSport, Eastpak, Timberland, and The North Face brands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Europcar</span> French car rental company

Europcar Mobility Group is a French car rental company founded in 1949 in Paris. The head office of the holding company, Europcar Group S.A., is in the business park of Val Saint-Quentin at Voisins-le-Bretonneux, France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fjällräven</span> Swedish company specialising in outdoor equipment

Fjällräven is a Swedish brand specialising in outdoor equipment—mostly upscale clothing and luggage. It was founded in 1960 by Åke Nordin (1936–2013) from Örnsköldsvik in northern Sweden. The company went public in 1983 with an over-the-counter listing in Stockholm. Since 2014, Fjällräven has been a subsidiary of Fenix Outdoor International AG, which is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. The group also includes the Tierra, Primus, Hanwag, Brunton, and Royal Robbins brands. The CEO of Fenix as of March 2018 was Martin Nordin, the oldest son of Åke Nordin.

The Husqvarna Group is a Swedish manufacturer of outdoor power products including robotic lawn mowers, chainsaws, trimmers, brushcutters, cultivators, and garden tractors. Founded as a firearms manufacturer in 1689, it is one of the oldest continuously running companies in the world. Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, the group also produces consumer watering products under the brand Gardena, cutting equipment and diamond tools for the construction and stone industries.

Advantage Rent a Car is a privately held American car rental company headquartered in Orlando, Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomson Reuters</span> Canadian multinational information conglomerate

Thomson Reuters Corporation is a Canadian multinational information conglomerate. The company was founded in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and maintains its headquarters at 19 Duncan Street there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surly Bikes</span> American bicycle manufacturing company

Surly Bikes, or Surly, is a bicycle brand based in Bloomington, Minnesota, United States, that was founded in 1998. It is a division of Quality Bicycle Products, a manufacturer and distributor of bicycles and bicycle parts. Despite sharing a similar name and being headquartered in the U.S. state of Minnesota, Surly Bikes and Surly Brewing Company are separate enterprises, with an agreement between the two companies allowing the bicycle company to display the single word "Surly" on its products. Surly Brewing’s Omar Ansari reached out to Surly Bikes before launching the brewery to make sure there would be no conflict.

Glentel is a Canadian telecommunications retailer based in Burnaby, British Columbia, jointly owned by BCE Inc. and Rogers Communications.

Transdev, formerly Veolia Transdev, is a France-based international private-sector company which operates public transport. It has operations in 17 countries and territories as of November 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murugappa Group</span> Indian conglomerate

Murugappa Group is an Indian conglomerate founded in 1900 by A. M. Murugappa Chettiar. The Group has 29 businesses including 10 companies listed on the NSE and the BSE. Headquartered in Chennai, the major companies of the Group include Carborundum Universal, Cholamandalam Financial Holdings, Cholamandalam Investment and Finance, Cholamandalam MS General Insurance, Coromandel International, EID Parry, Parry Agro Industries, Shanthi Gears, Tube Investments of India, Wendt (India), and CG Power and Industrial Solutions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pon Holdings</span> Dutch conglomerate in the transport sector

Pon Holdings BV is a Dutch conglomerate in the transportation sector. It was founded in 1980 by Ben Pon, Jr., a former racing car driver and son of Ben Pon, Sr., who became the importer of Volkswagen in the Netherlands in 1947. As of 2021 it is still owned by the Pon family.

Embracer Group AB is a Swedish video game and media holding company based in Karlstad. The company comprises 11 operative groups: Amplifier Game Invest, Asmodee, CDE Entertainment, Coffee Stain, Dark Horse Media, Deca Games, Easybrain, Freemode, Gearbox Entertainment, Plaion, and THQ Nordic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benno Bikes</span>

Benno Bikes is a bicycle brand and manufacturer of electric bicycles, cargo bikes, and comfort bikes, as well as cargo accessories and bicycle parts. It was founded in 2015 by Benno Baenziger — who made a name and reputation by co-founding with Jeano Erforth, Electra Bicycle company, a modern electric bike manufacturer, in Del Mar, California. These electric bicycles are a crossover between comfort bikes and cargo bikes. A sobriquet for the concept of these bikes has been described and trademarked as "etility" by Benno.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Thule Group IPO Prospectus 2014" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-01-29.
  2. "Thule". Thule Group. Archived from the original on 2020-12-28. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
  3. "Camera Bags - Tablet Cases - Laptop Cases - DVD/CD Cases - Case Logic - Case Logic". www.caselogic.com. Archived from the original on 2020-12-28. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
  4. "- SportRack US". www.sportrack.com. Archived from the original on 2020-12-28. Retrieved 2016-09-23.
  5. "Multisport and bike trailers". Thule.
  6. "Yepp". www.yepp.nl.
  7. "Tepui Rooftop Tents - Quality Car Camping". Tepui Tents - Rooftop Tents for Cars and Trucks. Archived from the original on 2020-12-28. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  8. 1 2 "Thule Group acquires Tepui Outdoors". SNEWS. Dec 18, 2018. Archived from the original on December 28, 2020. Retrieved Jan 6, 2019.
  9. "Bicycle rack". Archived from the original on 2020-12-28. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
  10. Sportworks (27 May 2019). "About Sportworks". Sportworks. Archived from the original on 28 December 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
  11. "Thule Store, MALMÖ - Företaget - eniro.se". www.eniro.se. Archived from the original on 2020-12-28. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
  12. "Thule Group acquires the Dutch child bike seat company GMG B.V." Thule Group. Jul 5, 2016. Retrieved Jan 6, 2019.
  13. "Strategic review of the Specialty segment completed - the business related to pick-up truck tool boxes to be divested". Thule Group. Feb 10, 2017. Retrieved Jan 6, 2019.
  14. "Thule Store: premiäröppning i Stockholm" (in Swedish). RESFREDAG. Feb 17, 2018. Archived from the original on December 28, 2020. Retrieved Jan 6, 2019.