3i snaps up Global Garden Products

Global Garden Products, an Italy-based lawn mower and powered garden equipment manufacturer, has been bought by 3i, a London-listed private equity firm, in a transaction which values the business at €730m. The vendors were ABN Amro Capital, the private equity arm of the Dutch bank, and AAC Capital Partners, the Northern European operations of ABN Amro Capital, which spun out in September. Existing management of Global Garden Products have invested alongside 3i. Global Garden Products was put up for sale by ABN Amro Capital in July, with UBS handling the auction process. The vendors were advised by UBS, Dewey & Leboeuf and PricewaterhouseCoopers, while 3i was advised by Morgan Stanley, Studio Chiomenti and KPMG. Headquartered in Castelfranco Veneto, Italy, Global Garden Products manufactures walk-behind and ride-on lawnmowers as well as a range of hand-held gardening equipment and accessories, with leading brands including Stiga, Castelgarden, Mountfield, Alpina and Below, along with products for OEMs including John Deere and Honda. The group has 15 subsidiaries in Europe, China and Russia, employing 1,800 people and has sales to year end August 31 2007 of €546m and €84m EBITDA.