Veltex Acquires Promotional Products Unit/Signs Golfer John Daly
Veltex Corp., a manufacturing, import and distribution company for apparel and accessories, has acquired the promotional products division of a Canadian manufacturing and distribution company.
The division of Explorer HeadGear has license agreements in place with Tommy Hilfiger, Top Flite, professional golfer John Daly, Budweiser, Spalding, Alfred Sung, Estrata, Indian Motorcycle and others. It manufactures and distributes brand name promotional products such as baseball caps, polo shirts and shoes, City of Industry, CA-based Veltex said.
“We wanted to be in Canada, and they wanted to be in the U.S., so it was a good merging together,” said Veltex CEO Javeed Matin.
The mostly cash deal includes 80 Canadian employees. The new entity will be called Veltex Canada and will continue operations in Markham, Ontario. Benji Falkenstein, a VP with Explorer HeadGear, has been named VP and head of the Veltex Canada. Matin will be CEO for both the U.S. and Canadian operations.
Matin said that no changes in management and no layoffs are expected at the Canadian site. Veltex opened an office in Canada a few months ago to begin its presence there.
The deal is expected to bring Veltex an additional $7 million in 2005 revenue. The company had projected 2005 revenue of $55 million prior to the acquisition.
“Veltex will gain many new clients and distributors and immediately benefit from this international expansion,” Matin said.
In a separate development, Veltex plans to distribute its golf apparel and products throughout many countries including Canada, Australia, England, Japan, Germany, Switzerland and South Africa. Last week, Veltex struck a licensing deal with golfer John Daly to market and license his branded golf products worldwide, Matin said.
In addition to the new Canadian operations, Veltex has three divisions: Veltex Apparel, specializing in caps, apparel and apparel accessories for the promotional products industry; Veltex Textile Mills, which manufacturers fabrics; and KCA Garment Industries, with manufacturers garments.
