Hunter Douglas

Hunter Douglas N.V.
Company typePublic
Euronext Amsterdam: HDG
IndustryWindow coverings
Founded1919; 105 years ago (1919), in Düsseldorf, Germany
HeadquartersRotterdam, The Netherlands
Key people
  • João Castro Neves (CEO)
  • David H. Sonnenberg (Executive Chairman)
  • Marko H. Sonnenberg (Senior Advisor)
Number of employees
23,618
Parent3G Capital
Websitehunterdouglasgroup.com

Hunter Douglas N.V. is a Dutch multinational corporation. Its principal business is making window blinds and coverings.[1][2] The company is publicly listed.

The head office is in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and a management office in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Structure

The current corporate structure, Hunter Douglas N.V., was formed in the Netherlands Antilles in 1971 as a result of a restructuring of the previous Canadian entity, Hunter Douglas Ltd.[3][4] For tax reasons, investors could select either common or preferred shares through 1990. The company operates in more than 100 countries.[5]

In February 2022, former CEO Ralph Sonnenberg transferred a 75% interest to 3G Capital through a Block Trade, the Sonnenberg Family now owns 25% of Hunter Douglas Group.[6]

Acquisitions

In 2013, Hunter Douglas purchased a minority stake in 247 Home Furnishings Ltd (247), which they did not make known to the Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA). At a later date in 2016, Hunter Douglas purchased a majority share in Blinds2Go which is by far the largest UK retailer of made-to-measure blinds. Following that, Hunter Douglas made a second acquisition of Hillarys Blinds in 2017. At this point, Hunter Douglas already owned a significant share of the market before purchasing a majority stake of 51% for 247 in 2019. The initial purchase in 2013 had not been cleared with the CMA and the second purchase would have given Hunter Douglas 100% ownership of 247. As a result of concerns around competition in the market, Hunter Douglas was forced to sell their 51% purchase of shares from 2019. This sale was completed and approved by the CMA and went to Cristobal Consulting Ltd.[7][8][9][10]

In March 2022, Hunter Douglas completed the acquisition of 74% of Droma-Sunshade Experts, an exterior sunscreen assembler, with a fast-growing sales presence in Western Europe.[11]

In October 2023, Hunter Douglas fully acquired Select Blinds- a leading US e-commerce blinds retailer.[12][13]

References

  1. ^ "Company News: Hunter Douglass to Purchase Comfortex". The New York Times. 26 June 1999. p. 3. Retrieved 23 March 2013.
  2. ^ Leib, Jeffrey (May 25, 1992). "Hunter Douglas keeps secrets in shade: Broomfield window-covering firm expects $350 million in sales in '92". Denver Post. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
  3. ^ Love, Johnathan (1977). Jane's Major Companies of Europe. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Company. pp. E–25. ISBN 9780531032640.
  4. ^ "Profile". Canadian Business. CB Media. 1972.
  5. ^ "About Hunter Douglas". Hunter Douglas. Archived from the original on May 30, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  6. ^ "3G CAPITAL COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF CONTROLLING INTEREST IN HUNTER DOUGLAS". Hunter Douglas IR. February 25, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  7. ^ "Hunter Douglas N.V. / 247 Home Furnishings Ltd merger inquiry". 21 November 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  8. ^ "Customers could lose out in merger between window blind companies". 16 July 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  9. ^ "Final decision published in window blind merger inquiry". 14 September 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  10. ^ "Window Blind Deal Clared by CMA". 4 August 2021. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  11. ^ "HUNTER DOUGLAS COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF 74% OF DROMA-SUNSHADE EXPERTS". Hunter Douglas IR. March 3, 2022. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  12. ^ http://investor.hunterdouglasgroup.com/news-releases/news-release-details/hunter-douglas-acquires-minority-select-blinds Archived 2024-03-14 at the Wayback Machine [bare URL]
  13. ^ "Select Blinds".