Guillette van Grinsven

Headquartered in the Netherlands and with more than 75 years of towbar expertise, the Brink Group works closely with OEMs on various programs and also serves the Aftermarket segment of the towing and trailering industry. The Brink Group produces nearly one million towbars annually, and the Brink Group’s products can be found on approximately 25 million vehicles worldwide. The Brink Group currently operates nine facilities in eight countries around the globe.
 
With annual revenue of approximately $150 million, the Brink Group’s addition to the Horizon Global portfolio will support the Company’s industry-leading manufacturing and product innovation capabilities. After the acquisition, Horizon Global will be well positioned to provide a robust and respected product portfolio that will more effectively serve its global customers across the OEM, OES, Aftermarket and Retail channels.

The parties expect to complete the transaction by the end of the second quarter 2018, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals.

Houthoff advised Active Capital Company on the acquisition of a 70% majority stake in the capital of Arnold Suhr, the world's second largest trader in quinine. Arnold Suhr supplies quinine to soda producers such as Coca Cola and Schweppes for the production of tonic. In addition to quinine, Arnold Suhr is a worldwide trader in raw materials such as stevia and iodine for the food and beverage, sport nutrition and pharmaceutical industry.

Advised Media-Saturn-Group, Europe’s number one consumer electronics retailer, on the acquisition of a majority stake in Dutch flash sales and live shopping platform iBOOD.com.

Houthoff advised Novasol Group, the Danish part of the NYSE listed Wyndham Worldwide, on the acquisition of Happy Home International. Happy Home International rents out holiday homes and is headquartered in the Netherlands. Novasol is market leader in the field of renting holiday homes in Europe and welcomes over 1,5 million guests yearly. With this acquisition, Novasol expands its rental portfolio to some 42.000 vacation houses located in 29 European countries.

Advised the sellers, including Lion Capital and Avedon Capital Partners, on the sale of Van Geloven, a Netherlands-based frozen food producer with leading positions in the Netherlands and Belgium, to TowerBrook Capital Partners and the management of Van Geloven.

Houthoff assisted Alcogroup, Vanden Avenne Commodities and Vandema in the purchase of the bio-ethanol factory of Abengoa Bioenergy Netherlands in Rotterdam, which was declared bankrupt earlier this year due to financial problems of the Spanish parent company Abengoa S.A. The transaction is subject to permission being granted by the relevant competition authorities.

Houthoff assisted the sellers (among whom, H2 Equity Partners and ABN AMRO Participaties) in the sale of Evenementenhal to Artexis Easyfairs.

Paul, Weiss together with Houthoff advised Apollo Global Investment in the 80.1% interest in Lumileds, a leading supplier of LED components and automotive lighting. Philips will retain the remaining 19.9% interest in Lumileds.

Houthoff advised Sligro Food Group Nederland on the acquisition of Tintelingen B.V. Sligro is - next to its food retail and food service business - one of the leading sellers of traditional Christmas gift boxes in the Netherlands. The addition of Tintelingen enables Sligro to expand its assortment with online Christmas gift boxes.