A new bright future has been secured for Samurai, the Norfolk based international sportswear company, following the acquisition of a majority stake by Primosole Holdings, in a transaction in which Samurai was advised by Yorkshire based deal making firm, Castle Square Corporate Finance.Samurai is a well-established, fast-rising brand in the sports and teamwear industry with customers in 24 countries around the world, supplying to a diverse range of sports including rugby, hockey, netball and athletics.
Among Samurai’s current customers include Premiership Rugby clubs Exeter Chiefs and Leicester Tigers, the Army Rugby Union, Hong Kong Rugby Football Club, Cornish Pirates and Derbyshire County Cricket Club. As well as professional, semi professional and amateur sports teams Samurai Sportswear has thousands of customers in schools, colleges, universities and corporations located across the globe.
Samurai have built a strong reputation for supplying very high quality, high specification bespoke sports clothing and equipment. Owning its own production facility enables Samurai to deliver world-class levels of service and quality excellence whilst staying true to their core values.
Primosole is a diversified investment holding company which partners with large family offices to acquire majority ownership and operational control in small-medium enterprises with a platform for growth in the Technology, Consumer Goods, Energy and Real Assets Space. Primosole’ s vision is to grow and transform Samurai into the most attractive and iconic brand in the rugby community and beyond.
The new management team will be formed of, the newly appointed CEO Stefano Schivo, Terry Sands in the new role of Director of Commercial Relationships and Keeley Theobald as Head of Operations and Production.
The Samurai team is also being reinforced with a number of key senior hires in strategic areas of the business, in addition to opening a new London office in Shoreditch.
Speaking about the transaction, Stefano Schivo said: “We are excited to partner with Samurai as we believe it represents a unique platform with significant untapped value – by merging different expertise Samurai has the potential to grow and further establish itself as a strong reference brand, particularly in the rugby community.”
Terry Sands said: “We are at the beginning of a new and exciting journey for Samurai, and I am looking forward to continue serving our customers with our high-quality products and services as well as to the innovation and new ideas that our partnership with Primosole will bring – Watch this space.”
Castle Square advised Samurai on the transaction. Castle Square is an independent, specialist mid-market Corporate Finance Boutique, operating from offices in Sheffield and Leeds. Castle Square had a proven track record of successfully delivering on a range of Corporate Finance transactions for clients nationally and internationally.
Castle Square Managing Director, Kevan Shaw, said “Having advised on the Management Buy Out of Samurai back in 2009, and on two subsequent fundraisings, we are delighted to have advised Terry Sands and Samurai, such a high-profile brand in the teamwear space, on this transformational investment”.
The Leeds office of law firm Mills Reeve, led by Partner Paul Johnson, provided legal services and advice to Samurai on the deal. Mills & Reeve is a leading multi-disciplinary law firm operating from 6 offices throughout England provide expert legal advice to clients across the UK and also internationally.
Partner at Mills & Reeves, Paul Johnson, said, “It was great to be able to guide Terry alongside the Castle Square team through the sale process allowing him to secure the investment that will position Samurai for the next stage of growth.”
Primosole was advised by Wilson Partners (Financial and Tax) and Marriott Harrison (Legal).
