Norton Motorcycles has been acquired by TVS Motor Company
Arrowpoint Advisory and Rothschild & Co have acted as the sole financial adviser to TVS Motor Company Limited on the acquisition of certain assets and the business (“Assets”) of Norton Motorcycles (UK) Limited and Norton Motorcycle Holdings Limited, UK-based manufacturer of premium motorcycles, put under the administration of BDO by its primary lender Metro Bank.
Established in 1898, Norton Motorcycles is an iconic British motorcycle maker, which offers highly successful Norton Dominator and Norton Commando bike brands. It has been famous for producing iconic race cycles over the past century as well as producing over 100,000 motorcycles to aid the 2nd world war effort of the United Kingdom. “Norton” features prominently in Che Guevara’s memoirs “The Motorcycle Diaries”, and the Norton motorcycles also feature in a multitude of movies including those from the James Bond franchise. The company has been re-incarnated several times over the past century passing through US ownership and finally being owned by Stuart Garner (UK citizen), prior to entering the administration process in January 2020.
TVS Motor is an India based 2-wheeler maker (among top 10 2-wheeler manufacturers globally, the 3rd largest 2-wheeler manufacturer in India) and the flagship company of the TVS Group, a US$8.5bn multinational group of businesses with more than 90 companies under its umbrella and presence in over 60 countries. TVS Motor sells more than 3 million units of 2-wheelers and 3-wheelers annually. In 2013, TVS Motor forged an alliance with BMW Motorrad to manufacture sub-500cc motorcycles for the globe. TVS Motor is listed on the (Indian) National Stock Exchange and the (Indian) Bombay Stock Exchange.
Mr. Sudarshan Venu, Joint Managing Director, TVS Motor Company said: “This is a momentous time for us at TVS Motor Company. Norton is an iconic British brand celebrated across the world, and presents us with an immense opportunity to scale globally. We will extend our full support for Norton to regain its full glory in the international motorcycle landscape.”
Ian Brown, Managing Director at Arrowpoint Advisory, commented: “We’re delighted to have supported TVS acquire Norton Motorcycles, advising on the transaction structure and financial terms of the offer for this truly iconic British brand. TVS Motor remained highly motivated in spite of the COVID-related uncertainties and complexities of the transaction, moving quickly to pull together a number of parties to create and complete a viable deal, with our support. This represents the first cross border mandate combining both Rothschild & Co and Arrowpoint capability, and demonstrates our ability to act together seamlessly as one team, leveraging off our respective strengths.”
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