About BRIO Wooden Toys - News and Information

22 December, 2004
BRIO Aquires European Nursery Group AS
- BRIO will become sole owner of European Nursery Group AS
- Thomas Bräutigam takes over as President and CEO of BRIO AB on 1 January 2005

BRIO has signed an agreement to acquire the remaining fifty per cent of the Norwegian company European Nursery Group AS (ENG) from a group of private investors. BRIO previously owned fifty per cent of ENG.

ENG develops and markets strollers, children's car seats and other accessories under the brand names BRIO, Simo and Carena. The group has 150 employees and a sales focus on the Nordic and German markets. ENG is the market leader on the Nordic market and was formed in 2000 when BRIO's business area for strollers and other accessories, BRIO Baby, merged with the Norwegian stroller manufacturer Simo AS. BRIO Baby was unprofitable for many years prior to the merger. ENG has gone through a restructuring scheme and the business is now showing positive results.

"Our future plans for BRIO build on us having control of the BRIO brand. The ENG acquisition is in line with our strategy of intensifying the focus on BRIO-branded products. The baby segment is also a very attractive market with clear growth potential," says BRIO's Chairman Daniel Sachs.

The purchase price of the fifty per cent share of ENG is NOK 81.2 million. BRIO will pay NOK 46.6 million in January 2005 and the remaining part via a promissory note loan from the sellers. BRIO's principle owner Proventus will underwrite this loan.

ENG will be consolidated as a wholly-owned subsidiary during Q1 2005. This will lead to an addition to BRIO's net sales of around SEK 300 million next year. The BRIO group's cash flow and operating income will be positively affected.

As previously stated, BRIO AB's board of directors has appointed ENG's current CEO, Thomas Bräutigam as President and CEO of BRIO AB. He will take over his new position from 1 January 2005.

For more information please contact:
Daniel Sachs, Chairman, BRIO, tel +46 8 723 31 00

This is BRIO
The toy company BRIO was founded in 1884. Today BRIO is one of Sweden's strongest brands and an international group with approximately 500 employees. The company has subsidiaries in 12 countries and sales to another 50 countries. Aside from development and sales of toys under the BRIO brand, BRIO operates an extensive wholesale business. BRIO's headquarters is located in Osby, Sweden. The BRIO B share has been listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange since 1985

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