TPG EXPANDS WITH TAKEOVER OF BLECKMANN/TNT GOING DUTCH
BIRMINGHAM POST 20th December 2001
TNT has beefed up its garment distribution operations in Europe with the acquisition of a Dutch fashion specialist. TNT Retail Express, which distributes clothes for the likes of Jaeger, Mothercare and Monsoon, has bought the Bleckman Group for an undisclosed sum. It is the Netherlands’ leading transport and warehousing company for the fashion industry. The move signals a major expansion of TNT Retail Express’s distribution activities in mainland Europe. Bleckmann will remain a subsidiary of TNT Retail Express with 815 staff, nearly 600 of them in Holland, where it runs 23 warehouses. The Dutchoperation is a member of the Europe-wide Fashionet distribution consortium. Bleckmann’s name will be retained, along with its existing management team. TNT divisional managing director Cris Stephenson said the two operations would fit well together. “Our aim is to provide fast and reliable pan-European distribution solutions. For the fashion and lifestyle sectors this means operating a specialist network capable of handling both boxed and hanging merchandise,” he said. Dutch-owned TNT has its UK headquarters and a major distribution hub at Atherstone in Warwickshire.
LLOYDS LIST 17th December 2001
Dutch mail, parcel and logistics company TPG has acquired Bleckmann, the Netherlands-based provider of transport and warehousing for the fashion sector. Terms have not been released. TPG bought Bleckmann from shareholders UBS Capital and its management. The deal was conducted through TPG&’s UK unit, TNT Retail Express. This acquisition signals a major expansion of the TNT Express garment distribution activities in mainland Europe. Bleckmann will become a wholly owned subsidiary of TNT Retail Express. Alan Jones, board member of TPG and group managing director of TNT Express, said: “The leading names in the fashion sector are expanding in mainland Europe by opening more retail outlets and sourcing an increasing proportion of their products on the continent. “Bleckmann has an excellent network of garment depots, warehouses and regular linehaul vehicle routes throughout Europe and is particularly strong in Eastern Europe, which has become one of the world&’s key fashion production regions.” Bleckmann&’s brand name will be retained and its existing management team, headed by Kees Meijer, will remain in place, reporting to Chris Stephenson, divisional managing director of TNT Retail Express. Logistics — Page 6 Copyright 2001 Lloyds List. Source: World Reporter (Trade Mark) – FT McCarthy.
