Strauss Group Ltd. (TASE:STRS) announced today that subsidiary Strauss Water Products Ltd., has signed a number of agreements with Richard Branson's Virgin Group to create a venture to manage the sales and service of Strauss water products in the UK and Ireland. The venture also has an option to expand its joint activities to France, Australia, and South Africa. The products will be sold under a joint Virgin and Strauss Water label.
Virgin Green Fund, the Virgin Group's investment company in the renewable energy and resource efficiency sectors, will invest $7.5 million in the first stage, and Strauss Water will invest $2.5 million, at a company value of $8 million, before money. After the initial investment, Strauss Water will own 58% of the joint project and the Virgin investment fund will own 42%.
Strauss president and CEO Gadi Lesin said, "Strauss Group has achieved another milestone today in its global development and in turning the company's brand into a global brand. The joint venture with Virgin has extraordinary strategic importance as it is the foundation for Strauss Water's continued development as the company's central growth engine in the next few years. Strauss Water will contribute its knowledge and expertise in the water business, and Virgin Group is a world leader in creating value for consumers and is a strong and well-loved brand. The combination of the two brands will enable us to bring our solution to more people around the world, and to create a leading water company."
Strauss' share price fell 1.8% in early trading today to NIS 46.81 giving a market cap of NIS 5 billion.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 20, 2011
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