CVC Capital acquires optical retail chain Synsam Nordic

Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners has acquired optical retail chain Synsam Nordic from Swedish investment firm Alipes AB and former store owners.

Alipes is controlled by Sweden's Kamprad family's Inter IKEA Investments and Ikano, which in turn also controls furniture retail giant IKEA.

CVC, one of Europe's largest private-equity firms, did not reveal the financial terms of the deal, but Synsam Nordic had sales of around 3 billion Swedish kronor ($468 million) in 2013.

Synsam Nordic is the largest optical retail chain in the Nordic region with more than 420 own stores and franchisees in Sweden, Denmark and Norway employing around 2,600 people.

Synsam offers a wide quality assortment of spectacles, contact lenses, sunglasses, accessories and eye examinations.

Synsam's history stretches back to 1968 when independent opticians in Sweden joined forces under a common brand name.

''Synsam is our oldest portfolio company and we are proud of having worked together with former store owners and an excellent management team to develop it from a voluntary retail chain to the leading integrated optical retail chain in the Nordic,'' said Gunnar Selving and Richard Silén, partners at Alipes.

In a joint statement, Peter Törnquist and Søren Vestergaard-Poulsen, partners at CVC, said: "Synsam is a successful company which has been transformed into an integrated retail chain. With attractive market positions, a strong brand name and an extensive store network as well as an emerging online offering, Synsam is now ready to take the next step in its development. We look forward to working closely with Synsam's management in the coming years to support this development and to realise the company's long term potential as a leading modern optical retailer."