French group Beaumanoir takes over Western European operations of Boardriders brands including Quicksilver and Billabong

The French Beaumanoir Group is making its next move, following its acquisitions of women’s retailer Caroll in 2021 and the Sarenza website in 2022. The Brittany-based company has now entered into exclusive negotiations with the American Authentic Brands Group (ABG) to buy the Western European activities of the Boardriders Group made up of Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy, DC Shoes, Element and RVCA, according to FashionNetwork.com. Financial details were not disclosed by the owner of the Cache Cache, Bonobo, Morgan and Bréal brands.

Roland Beaumanoir, the group’s CEO, believes that this takeover “would develop the Beaumanoir Group’s expertise in the lifestyle segment, which is doing well. The Boardriders brands are emblematic and offer a lifestyle that is both relaxed and driven by a passion for outdoor sports. We would therefore be delighted to take on the challenge of promoting these brands on the European market.” Details of the countries covered by the agreement have not yet been released.

Beaumanoir would take over the management and distribution of these board sports brands, and would like to boost their wholesale sales, a distribution channel little used until now by the Breton group, which is used to build networks of branded shops. Beaumanoir’s strength in supply and logistics – through its subsidiary C-Log – will be used to these brands advantage.

Nicolas Foulet, Chairman of Boardriders EMEA, said he was “fully committed to this great opportunity, which will enable us to adapt more quickly to a rapidly changing world and to extend the influence of our brands over the long term, both in practice areas and in more urban environments.”

The group’s European headquarters are based in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, in the Basque country. The fate of several hundred employees has not yet been decided, as this is currently a period of exclusive negotiations. The future of the brand shop networks and the Boardriders multi-brand stores in major towns and ski resorts has not been discussed either.

The American Authentic Brands Group acquired Boardriders in autumn 2023. It has already secured partnerships in other regions of the globe: at the end of December, several contracts were signed in Asia-Pacific, including a collaboration with BRJ Group for Japan and Taiwan.

The Beaumanoir Group shares Authentic’s commitment to brand development, growth and expansion,” explains John McNamara, head of strategy and transition at Authentic Brands Group. “Its in-depth knowledge of the European market, combined with its significant presence as one of Europe’s leading retailers, means that we can look forward to a long-term partnership.”

The Beaumanoir Group, which was founded in 1981 and currently employs 13,000 people, claims to have generated sales of €2.1 billion by 2022, with a network of 2,000 sales outlets. The Beaumanoir family is always on the lookout for new takeovers, and last autumn it applied to buy the Kookaï brand and a handful of its shops, but its bid was rejected by Antonelle-Un Jour Ailleurs.