JAYS Group AB acquires the Danish award-winning audio brand CLINT® to expand into connected audio and multiroom & smart speakers


Regulatory press release 21st of February 2019

JAYS Group AB has signed a binding agreement to acquire the award-winning Danish lifestyle audio brand CLINT® Digital which has been among the pioneers in Nordic design multiroom streaming speakers. The CLINT® brand will be included into the JAYS Group AB organization from 1st of March 2019.

A dedicated team for CLINT® Digital will be established in Denmark to further develop and grow the CLINT® brand and to bring new exciting smart speakers and connected audio products to market already in second half of 2019. This team will be run by the original founder and commercial director of CLINT® Brian Larsen together with Head of Product Development René Larsen and the Product designer & Creative Director Phillip Bodum, who all have strong knowledge for the brand as well as the worldwide market for connected audio and lifestyle loudspeakers in general.

The closing date is planned the 28th February 2019, when all CLINT® activities including IPR rights will be transferred to JAYS Group AB, a publicly listed company on the Nasdaq First North. At closing Jays will pay a fixed purchase price of 750 000 SEK for all the CLINT® activities including IPR rights, tooling and inventory etc. The seller EET and JAYS have agreed to honor the co-operation and sales of certain products through EET Group’s sales and distribution channels, and that JAYS will continue to develop the product portfolio of the CLINT® brand. The closing is planned to 28th of February 2019, when the final settlement will be made in relation to the transfer of the assets between the seller EET Group and the buyer JAYS Group. JAYS forecast the sales revenue of the CLINT® activities to between 9 - 18 MSEK per annum 2019-2020 with a positive EBITDA result, with a strong growth opportunity following the new upgraded and more complete product portfolio planned to be released quarter 3 of 2019.

The previous owners - EET Group A/S – one of the largest European IT distribution companies, which have activities in more than 25 European countries, have been a proud owner of Clint® Digital for the last 5 years and within that time helped in bringing this upcoming brand to market. Alongside the product development EET, have just begun expanding the sales channels in the Nordics from a one-reseller strategy to a multi-channel strategy, including major retail chains, A/V and Hi-Fi stores, telecom operators and lifestyle resellers.
“This journey for the Clint brand has just begun and we are pleased to secure that the product portfolio will be further and rapidly expanded under the new owner JAYS Group. EET and Jays will continue its newly established partnership and expect increased opportunities to co-operate in the future”, says CEO Søren Drewsen from EET Group A/S.

The new brand strategy agreed with the new owner JAYS is to begin to upgrade the entire CLINT® product portfolio to latest industry standards with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, and at the same time also support the latest Apple Airplay 2 standards. “By keeping the brand DNA and classic modern designs and adding the Nordic lifestyle brand and product approach already available at JAYS Group this will bring valuable expertise for sales and marketing for CLINT® and will take the brand further among the rapidly growing Smart Speaker and Connected audio category”,  says Brian Larsen, founder of CLINT® Digital and acting Commercial Director’.

JAYS Group AB believes strongly in the CLINT® brand, which have already won many prestigious worldwide awards, including IF Design Awards, Red Dot awards, Good Design award etc. All because of the Nordic design legacy which the brand carry and the overall focus for ‘Nordic living’ and less-is-more concept. ‘It goes well hand in hand with JAYS Group’s communicated growth strategy and our future expansion plans to create a strong group within audio & sound and smart mobility & connectivity areas. We are very much looking forward to strengthen the partnership with the seller EET Group, and to develop the Clint brand together with the two founders Brian Larsen, Rene Larsen and the Product designer & Creative Director Phillip Bodum”, says CEO Henrik Andersson from JAYS Group AB.

All customer and supplier contacts have been handed over to the new owner, who is to be contacted in the future in this regard as well as other inquiries related to future commercial business involving CLINT® Digital.  

Advisor
Advokatfirman Vinge KB has acted as legal counsel to Jays Group for its acquisition of CLINT® Digital.

For overall and general information in regards to this Press Release, please contact:
Henrik Andersson, CEO, Jays Group AB
Phone: +46 76 199 35 55
Email: henrik@jaysheadphones.com

This information is information that Jays Group AB (Publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above, at 21st February 2019, 08:30.

About CLINT®
CLINT® Digital is a multi award-winning brand from Denmark for connected audio and multiroom streaming. All meant for the growing digital and design oriented worldwide audience.  We take pride in being an innovative and forward-thinking brand. 

The product range is mainly developed and designed in Denmark and strongly focuses on the Nordic design and simple functionality. CLINT® creates digital products that include state-of-the-art technology, sophisticated design and user-friendliness for everyone.

No wires – no cables – no hassle.
 

About JAYS Group AB

Jays Group AB is a publicly listed company on Nasdaq First North. It was founded in 2006 with a vision that everyone should have the opportunity to experience great sound and design. Our goal is to create the ultimate personal companion for the modern individual looking to express themselves in their pursuit of a meaningful and experience-rich life. JAYS Group AB lately expanding into Smart Mobility with the acquisition of KRUSELL AB. This brand has a legacy of high-quality mobile accessories since 1991 and with a strong dedication and Nordic appeal in this area.
 
In staying true to our overall vision, we have always been on the forefront of both technology and design innovation helping to contribute and push the market forward. Rooted in our Swedish heritage, our design philosophy emphasizes harmony through a blend of functionality and style. By focusing on clean lines and uncluttered curves, we use minimalism to achieve excellence. Nothing more, nothing less. Made to enhance your lifestyle, our products are designed to express the fundamental human values that we all crave in our lives — simplicity, beauty, quality. The perfect balance. Or as we say in Swedish, ‘Lagom’

Jays vision and growth strategy is based on strong organic growth with profitability in combination with acquisition-driven growth within the audio segment and other close related verticals within consumer electronics such as smart-connectivity and mobile products. In 2017 Jays Group announced the new Group strategy, with a target of a yearly turnover of 200 MSEK by the end of 2019 and approximately 300 MSEK by the end of the three-year period 2018-2020. JAYS Group currently has offices in Sweden, Germany, Hong Kong, Mainland China and its 100% owned production facility in Thailand.

Jays Group AB (publ) is noted at Nasdaq First North. Certified Adviser is Mangold Fondkommission AB. Engelbrektsplan 2, 114 34 Stockholm, tel. 08-503 015 50, e-mail: CA@mangold.se. 

About EET Europarts
EET Group is Europe's leading distributor within Server, Computer & Printer parts, Storage & Network, Mobile Parts & Accessories, Consumer Electronics, Surveillance & Security, Professional AV & Digital Signage, Point of Sale & Auto ID and Logistical Services. 

EET Group was founded in 1986, and is today represented with 28 sales offices in 25 countries across Europe under the commercial name EET Europarts.

EET Group represents a wide range of leading brands including: HP Inc., Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Lenovo, MicroConnect, MicroBattery, Ubiquiti Networks, HP Procurve, Cisco, Synology, Qnap, B&O Play, Loewe, Kensington, tado, Apple, eSTUFF, Incipio, Griffin, MicroSpareparts Mobile, Axis, Hikvision, Bosch, MicroView, Milestone, NEC, Philips, EPSON, VivoLink, Airtame, Zebra, Honeywell, Star Micronics, Datalogic, Datamax and many more.

EET Group is situated in Birkerød just north of Copenhagen and is the parent company of all EET Europarts sales entities. As such, EET Group is the backbone of the organisation and provides all back-office functions within: Corporate Management, Finance, Marketing, IT, WEB- and ERP-development, Logistics, Product Management and Procurement.

The group employs more than 575 employees, serves more than 43.000 dealers and handles more than 1.100.000 deliveries per year.