Garmin® Signs Letters of Intent to Acquire Distributors in Austria and Portugal
Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN) announced today that it has signed letters of
intent for the proposed acquisition of Puls Elektronik GmbH (“Puls
Elektronik”), the distributor of Garmin’s consumer products in Austria
and Satsignal Equipamentos de Comunicações e de Navegação S.A.
(“Satsignal”), the distributor of Garmin’s consumer products in
Portugal. The completion of each of these acquisitions is subject to the
negotiation and execution of a definitive acquisition agreement, the
completion of legal and financial due diligence and customary closing
conditions. The acquisitions are expected to be completed by August 2008.
Dr. Min Kao, chairman and CEO of Garmin Ltd., said “These proposed
acquisitions are a continuation of our successful strategy of enhancing
our ability to support key retailers and OEMs in European markets. We
have to date acquired our distributors in five European countries. These
acquisitions have enabled us to increase our European market share and
further solidify our position as the global leader in satellite
navigation. The proposed acquisitions of Puls Elektronik and Satsignal,
together with the previously announced, pending acquisitions of our
distributors in Belgium and Finland, will further strengthen Garmin’s
distribution in European markets.”
Dr. Hartwig Strobl, managing director of Puls Elektronik, said “We are
very proud of our achievements in building the Garmin brand into a
leading position in Austria. We are confident that full integration of
our company into the Garmin family will enable us to achieve benefits
for our customers and additional sales growth.”
Carlos Martins, managing director of Satsignal, said “As the distributor
in Portugal of Garmin’s automotive/mobile, marine and outdoor/fitness
products since 2002, we at SatSignal are also proud of our achievements
in building the Garmin brand in Portugal. We expect to be able to
achieve additional efficiencies and capture more opportunities through
full integration into Garmin.”
Financial terms of the proposed transactions were not released.
Following the acquisition, Puls Elektronik is expected to change its
name to Garmin Austria GmbH. and Satsignal is expected to change its
name to Garmin Portugal S.A. Puls Elektronik and Satsignal will each
retain their management, sales, marketing and supporting staff,
consisting of 30 people and 15 people respectively, and will continue
operations at their current headquarters located respectively in Graz,
Austria and Lisbon, Portugal.
About Garmin
The global leader in satellite navigation, Garmin Ltd. and its
subsidiaries have designed, manufactured, marketed and sold navigation,
communication and information devices and applications since 1989 – most
of which are enabled by GPS technology. Garmin’s products serve
automotive, mobile, wireless, outdoor recreation, marine, aviation, and
OEM applications. Garmin Ltd. is incorporated in the Cayman Islands, and
its principal subsidiaries are located in the United States, Taiwan and
the United Kingdom. For more information, visit Garmin’s virtual
pressroom at www.garmin.com/pressroom
or contact the Media Relations department at 913-397-8200. Garmin is a
registered trademark of Garmin Ltd.
Notice on forward-looking statements:
This release includes forward-looking statements regarding Garmin
Ltd. and its business. Such statements are based on management’s current
expectations. The forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in
this release may not occur and actual results could differ materially as
a result of known and unknown risk factors and uncertainties affecting
Garmin, including, but not limited to, the risk factors listed in the
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 29, 2007 filed by
Garmin with the Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission file
number 0-31983). A copy of Garmin’s Form 10-K can be downloaded at www.garmin.com/aboutGarmin/invRelations/finReports.html.
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