Saying That....Hot Off The Press!! 15th July 2015
"Middleby Buys Rangemaster"
British cooker manufacturer and one of the few left, Aga Rangemaster, is to be sold to US firm Middleby in a deal valued at £129m.
The group, which is based in Leamington Spa, and has been manufacturing its stoves in Coalbrookdale, Shropshire, since 1930, said it had agreed a sale with the Middleby Corporation.
Middleby said it would carry out a strategic review of operations later in the year, once the deal is completed. Which is often code for, redundancies and production “rationalisation” to follow soon in such deals.
Many people in Europe and the UK in particular would not know the Middleby name but they are also producers of the upmarket US brand, Viking.
It said it planned to keep Aga's manufacturing in the UK.
Last year, Aga announced a fall in profits, mainly because of pension costs, shop closures and site rationalisation, although revenues rose.
However, it said markets for its appliances had strengthened at the start of the year.
The group, which also owns the Fired Earth tiles brand, recently began sales in China after spending more than two years gaining the right accreditations.
Selim Bassoul, chairman and chief executive of Illinois-based Middleby, said the takeover would strengthen the company's global reach.
Aga said the deal would help increase sales of its brands in North America, while the British firm would offer Middleby a "European platform".
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