Douglas Holding said it was in discussions with Charterhouse Capital Partners to buy its portfolio company Nocibe. Advent International Corp owns Douglas Holding, a Germany-based cosmetics retailer. Nocibe is its France-based rival. The acquisition of Nocibe would enable Douglas to strengthen its foothold in the perfume market in Europe. No financial details were disclosed about the deal which would create the largest perfume chain in terms of outlets in France.
In June, Manfred Kroneder had told reporters that Douglas was going to expand and lead Europe's main markets by making targeted acquisitions. He also revealed that the company had up to EUR 500 million or USD 684 million in its coffers available for expansion in seven years. Kroneder is the head of the perfume business of Douglas Holding.
Advent purchased a controlling stake in Douglas in July for a price tag of EUR 1.5 billion. Nocibe, meanwhile, was bought by Charterhouse in 2006 in a deal worth EUR 490 million.
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