Backnang, Germany (February 29, 2016)—A mainstay of the modern live sound market, loudspeaker system manufacturer d&b audiotechnik has been acquired by Ardian, an international, independent private investment company. The purchase was made from investment companies Odewald & Compagnie and COBEPA, which first acquired d&b in 2011. Financial arrangements were not disclosed and the transaction is still subject to regulatory approval.

 As part of the transaction, the existing management team, led by CEO Amnon Harman, Markus Strohmeier (managing director, Technology and Operations), Frank Bothe (director R&D), Kay Lange (Director Finance), Hans-Peter Nüdling (director Sales & Services) and Sabina Berloffa (director Marketing) will also take a stake in the company.

Ardian is an independent private investment company with assets of $55 billion managed or advised in Europe, North America and Asia. The company is majority-owned by its 410 employees in 12 offices in Paris, London, Frankfurt, Milan, Madrid, Zurich, New York, San Francisco, Beijing, Singapore, Jersey and Luxembourg.

Under Odewald & Compagnie and COBEPA, d&b’s sales have more than doubled from €44 million in 2011 to €94 million in the financial year 2015. The number of employees has also risen from 200 in 2011 to around 350 today. Emphasis was placed on the internationalization of the company; today, d&b operates in a total of more than 70 countries and new subsidiaries have been founded in Europe, the USA and Japan. In particular, d&b reportedly achieved strong growth in the US and Asia.

Continuing in that vein, Harman, CEO of d&b, noted in a statement that the company would be looking to “further develop” its presence in the Asia-Pacific, South American and North American markets and aimed to expand the business with permanently installed systems and futher audio solution development.

Fabian Wagener, director at Ardian, added: “Over the past three decades, d&b has become a premium brand in the professional audio technology sector and has shown outstanding organic growth. We are convinced of the company’s innovative strength, its results-oriented management team, its dedicated employees and the resulting growth perspectives. Together with management, we will refine the existing product portfolio and provide important impulses for the further international growth of the company.”

*Source from Pro Sound News Magazine Issue 2016 Feb