Lovehoney merges with WOW Tech

Thought I’d share the Press Release here: :slightly_smiling_face:

12.08.2021

Press release

WOW Tech Group and Lovehoney combine to form the

Lovehoney Group (LHG)

Bath/Berlin (12 August, 2021) — WOW Tech Group and Lovehoney join forces, as two of the global market leaders in sexual wellness. Together with Swiss brand Amorana – acquired by Lovehoney in 2020 – they now form the Lovehoney Group (LHG).

The transaction combines Lovehoney’s leading international operations and brands – including Fifty Shades of Grey – with WOW Tech’s powerhouse Womanizer, We-Vibe, Romp and Arcwave family of brands. The combined group will be led by WOW Tech CEO Johannes Plettenberg. Lovehoney and WOW Tech will continue to be run by their current management teams.

The group’s focus will be on delivering exceptional B2B customer service, including creative and demand-driving marketing across all touchpoints, as well as buzz-worthy PR campaigns to raise awareness and keep the brands at the forefront of consumers’ minds. Additionally, LHG’s strategy will continue to be focused on enforcing its extensive patent portfolio, which will be pursued with full force to protect the B2B partners’ commitment to the strong brand portfolio.

LHG is now home to more than 650 highly trained professionals from over 25 nations, located in eight offices across the world with a broad spectrum of talents across engineering, industrial design, sales, and marketing, and will continue to provide best-in-class brands and truly innovative and high-quality products to its retail partners.

LHG’s lead investor is Telemos Capital, the majority owner of Lovehoney since 2018. CDH Investments, which holds a significant stake in WOW Tech, stays on board as a minority investor as do the co-founders of Lovehoney Neal Slateford and Richard Longhurst.

Johannes Plettenberg, CEO of the Lovehoney Group commented:

“We are excited about this transaction and partnership. Amorana, Lovehoney, and WOW Tech share the same mission to destigmatise sexuality, empower people to enjoy a fulfilling love life, and experience sexual happiness. Combined, we will be even better placed to contribute to bringing sexual happiness to the centre of society. This will benefit our entire industry. We are looking forward to continuing to work with our teams to create even more value for all our B2B partners and their customer base. By partnering even more closely together, I am certain we can all achieve our common goals.”

About Lovehoney

Established in Bath in 2002 by Richard Longhurst and Neal Slateford, Lovehoney is a market-leading pleasure products brand. Its focus on exceptional product innovation, customer service and marketing has placed Lovehoney at the forefront of developments in the sexual wellbeing market. In recognition of the business’ achievements, Lovehoney received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2016 and again in 2021 for outstanding continuous growth in overseas sales. In 2018 Telemos Capital became the majority owner of Lovehoney.

About WOW Tech Group

WOW Tech is one of the leading companies in the sexual wellness industry and a provider of premium products for consumers’ love lives. The Company’s primary focus lies in the research and development of new innovative products. CEO Johannes Plettenberg laid the foundation for WOW Tech as early as 2017 when he, together with investors led by Munich Rigeto, took over the German company Womanizer. The following year Womanizer merged with the Canadian sex toy manufacturer We-Vibe, and WOW Tech Group was born. In early 2020 CDH Investments became the majority owner of Wow Tech Group.

About Telemos Capital

Telemos comprises a team of highly experienced investment professionals that combine the best of private equity and permanent growth capital. Founded in 2017, Telemos identifies and supports exceptional management teams in consumer goods, healthcare services, and business services to help them realise their long-term objectives. As a flexible and nimble investor, Telemos’ distinct structure and expertise make it a leading, new generation European private equity firm, looking to identify and unlock attractive opportunities for growth and value creation.

About CDH Investments

Founded in 2002, CDH is one of the most well-established alternative assets management firms in Asia, with offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing. CDH manages six USD-denominated private equity investment funds and other investment strategies, with cumulative assets under management of approximately USD26 billion (as of December 2020). CDH has partnered with over 150 companies, most of them leaders in a range of consumer and healthcare industries. CDH employs a long-term investment philosophy centred around empowering industry-leading teams in their efforts to grow and create value for all stakeholders sustainably.

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Thanks @Ian_Chimp. Hadn’t seen this. Those are some big brands coming in to the family.

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Do you reckon they’d be more willing to change the toy name from ‘Womanizer’ to ‘Muff Snuffler’ now? :thinking:

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I nearly choked on my tea @Ian_Chimp :rofl::rofl::heart:

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Oh definitely. From an infinitesimal chance to a very slightly better chance.

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I just hope this merger does not change the forum too much. The new companies may have other idea’s as to the costs involved in the forum (costs to them).

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Huh, interesting. Does mean lovehoney get a european address and im assuming warehouses. Fingers crossed this sorts the import tax issue for some people.
Hopefully its a partnership more than a merger and doesnt change things here too drastically.

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I wouldn’t worry on that score, Steve. The costs of maintaining a web forum are barely a drop in the ocean compared with the turnover. profits etc of what is now a massive global brand. My main concern is that the more corporate things become, the greater will be the influence of the bean-counters. But then I’m a “Glass half empty? You mean there’s a glass?” type of person. :wink:

Interesting. Thanks for sharing @Ian_Chimp I don’t think I’d have seen this if you hadn’t posted it.

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Wow!

This will be very interesting, that’s for sure.

Just thinking about the logic of this merger. I’m no kind of expert in this stuff, but it seems to me that merging with a German company could be a clever bit of post-Brexit strategy to obtain legal status as an EU-based trader …and thus perhaps create a workaround for the import duty problem that currently plagues sales to EU customers? I dunno - it seems like a foot in the door, though, no? :thinking:

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Cheers for highlighting this, which is a stark reminder that’s it’s a business to make a profit.

It’d be a crap business if it wasn’t. :slightly_smiling_face: But hopefully they throw a few orgasms around while they’re at it. :slightly_smiling_face::+1:

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i like your thinking @PleasureDrone there could be something in what you said. It would make sense as an easy way to get around things and saves having to set up something new.

Wow seems to sum it up in one lol :laughing:

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This was my thought. Hopefully it works for them, i know alot of buisnesses are struggling with that

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I see that lovehoney has merged with wowtech technologies, will this change the forum, merge the forum and what does it have instore for us?? @Lovehoney_Brenna

They manufacture sex toys, so i doubt it will impact the forum too much, just provide more choice in the store?

Some information and discussion in Lovehoney merges with WOW Tech. I don’t think it will impact the forum :+1:.