Swedish pension fund invests in maritime business

The Sixth Swedish National Pension Fund has bought a minority stake in Sportmanship Invest, owner of the Sportmanship Group, which distributes international marine brands in Sweden.

The Sixth AP Fund manages public pensions in order to create high long-term returns and maintain satisfactory risk diversification by investing in small- and medium-sized Swedish companies. Gothenburg based Sportmanship AB has a turn over of more than SEK700 million (€73 million) and employs more than 130 people.

"We've had a long discussion with the main owners of Sportmanship Invest about the development of their company. The discussion involves brand names as well as the distribution in Sweden and the Nordic region", says Mats Augurell, Business Area Manager, AP Partner Investments.

Names including Garmin, Henri-Lloyd and O´Neill are part of the Sportmanship Group stable, while the company's subsidiaries distribute brands such as Sail Racing, Raymarine and Roblon in Sweden. Garmin electronics is said to be the Sportmanship Group's fastest growing interest today.

"We´ve approached the fund to get them onboard as partial owner. We want a better possibility to keep on investing and developing our company for the future", comments Sportmanship founder Christer "Creder" Johansson.

Örjan Serner, the new chairman of the board for Sportmanship Invest, was a partner in the Sixth AP Fund's investment in the company.

Source:RamblerNews