Dear Claudia! Congratulations again on your deal with Ambienta in November 2022. How is the cooperation with the new investor going?
Thank you very much! In the initial phase of our partnership with Ambienta, the main focus was on getting to know each other. Lässig is a family business with a special corporate culture. Ambienta acts as a professional investor in a very focused and analytical way. Together we are now working on combining the best of these two worlds and generating added value from it. The goal is to build a system as a role model that ensures the future positioning of Lässig as a company. We are on the right path to achieving this common goal.
When and how did the idea for founding the Lässig brand arise?
We first started with the distribution of branded baby and children’s products. Over time, however, we realized that we would like to have more influence on the materials and production conditions of the products, as sustainability has been very important to us from the very beginning. In order to be able to generate real impact and build long-term value, we founded Lässig as a small family business in 2006. With a focus on diaper bags, we launched our first collection in 2007. Thanks to our knowledge of the market, we were quickly able to find retailers who distributed our products. However, we certainly underestimated the complexity of this venture. We needed a lot of courage and confidence to be successful. By the time the first collection rolled off the production line, I had already spent a long time in Asia. However, this also allowed us to build very loyal and sustainable supplier relationships. Our suppliers have really become part of the Lässig family.
What are the factors that drive Lässig’s success? What makes Lässig unique from the competition?
We already set our clear focus on sustainability 20 years ago. For this purpose, we have defined several pillars of sustainability: ecologically sustainable products and materials, fair production conditions, customer satisfaction, committed employees and social responsibility. The Lässig brand thus certainly stands for authenticity and credibility for the end customer. Another important aspect is the diversity of our product portfolio. We started building up broad baby and children’s product worlds at an early stage. This is essential, especially in retail. In addition, the strength of Lässig is above all its familiar character. We aim to bring humanity, emotionality and profitability into harmony. The strong team spirit is certainly a key success factor for the great development of the Lässig brand.
What were the reasons for starting a M&A process?
We are convinced that as a company you always have to develop further in order to be able to survive on the market in the long term. This is also a form of sustainability. Especially for digitization and internationalization, a further transformation of the company is necessary. We have already made some progress here, but expert knowledge can help us to approach the next steps correctly and effectively. For this purpose, we looked for a new partner. We already had very good experiences with ARCUS Capital as a partner in recent years. For the further scaling of the company, we particularly looked for an internationally oriented partner.
Why did you choose ox8 Corporate Finance as your M&A advisor? How do you evaluate the collaboration?
For us, humanity is always the main aspect. We had already experienced that an M&A process is a very intensive phase of life. That is why we were looking for an advisor who acts in a trusful and appreciative manner. With ox8, we were impressed by both the expertise and the humanity. Above all, we appreciate the boutique character, as we were intensively supported by the same people throughout the entire process. In addition, ox8’s track record has been extremely impressive.
Overall, the process was extremely well structured. We felt very well cared for. Every meeting was perfectly prepared, the ox8 team always did more than required and shielded us well. In terms of timing, the process was really tough, but rather short and painless, which was a challenge especially for the potential buyers. For us, this was actually ideal. ox8 presented us with a good selection of suitable buyers and perfectly structured the process until the closing.
Why did you choose Ambienta as your new partner?
Just like Lässig, Ambienta focused on sustainability at a very early stage. We are both absolute pioneers in our respective industries in this regard. We were very pleased with that from the very first conversation and we can certainly learn a lot from each other. Moreover, Ambienta always behaved very fairly and transparently during the process and offered us a good deal. In addition, the discussions were extremely constructive. The most important decision-making criteria were above all internationalization and sustainability. Therefore, the decision in favour of Ambienta was very obvious. Many other potentials can certainly arise from this partnership.
What are Lässig’s future plans and long-term goals?
The long-term goal of Lässig has actually never changed. We want to continue to be the absolute benchmark for sustainability in the baby and children’s products industry in Europe and achieve constant growth with high stability. However, in addition to expanding the European markets, we will also focus more on the global expansion of the Lässig brand. We really desire that Lässig continues to develop so positively as a company and that we continue to grow together as a collaborative team. As an employer, we also want to be the reference for New Work. The company should be a place where our employees feel comfortable and enjoy working.
