“We have been following Maier Sports closely for some time now and we have the deepest respect for all that has been achieved in the times of Gerhard Maier in Köngen. It is a company firmly rooted in outstanding textile and fitting expertise. Also, over the past years it has built a corporate culture focusing on team spirit and a sustainable company growth in the fields of ski and outdoor. We are very happy to welcome the two brands to our family and we are convinced that they will perfectly complement our outdoor division,“ says Martin Riebel, CEO of Deuter and the Schwan-STABILO Outdoor GmbH.

“We are very happy to become a member of such a strong and successful group” states Simone Mayer, spokesperson of the Maier Sports GmbH. “We are a textile ski and outdoor expert with Maier Sports and deliver performance bikewear with Gonso – thus we are the ideal match to the Schwan-STABILO outdoor brands.“ The company based in Köngen / Germany is renowned as a fitting and trouser expert with a strong innovative drive and top quality. A reputation underlined by numerous awards and test wins as well as patent pending inventions like the multi-day trekking jacket, or the pioneering role in PFC-free impregnation for outdoor and skiwear. It is the German engineering tradition and the thorough understanding of product and market that defines the company. It is shaped by a keen sense of the customer’s needs and shows great strength in realizing those demands in market-oriented products.

The transaction also includes bikewear pioneer Gonso, the soul of German cycling. The first synthetic cycling shorts were developed and produced at Gonso’s home in the Swabian Alps. Today Gonso offers a comprehensive collection of highly functional bikewear for relaxed riders and ambitious cyclists alike. And the perfect fit is also key to Gonso’s outstanding performance.

“With our new acquisitions our group’s outdoor division is complete for now. The outdoor portfolio now holds four strong companies with Deuter, ORTOVOX, Maier Sports and Gonso. They are based in a healthy and seminal industry and will deliver an important contribution to the long-term stability of the Schwan-STABILO group”, says the group’s CEO Sebastian Schwanhäußer.

Maier Sports GmbH has its own production sites in Turkey and Asia. Product development and design is still located in the headquarters in Köngen, home of the company for more than 75 years, where a sewing department still takes care of service and repairs.

The headquarters of Maier Sports and Gonso in Köngen and Albstadt has high confidence in the new owners, who see the acquisition as a strategic and long-term investment. The Maier Sports group expects new impulses for its own organisation, the distribution, as well as for pushing the development of brand values. After especially focusing on re-organisation and building new structures, Maier Sports will now concentrate even more on the brand, the products and the production. www.schwan-stabilo.com