이 기사는 2021년 10월 22일 08:09 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.

IMM Private Equity (IMM PE) is set to acquire South Korea’s largest furniture and home furnishing company Hanssem three months after the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding.

IMM PE plans to sign a stock purchase agreement with Hanssem on Friday, industry sources said on Wednesday. The PE firm will buy an around 30% stake in Hanssem, owned by honorary chairman Cho Chang-geol (15.45%) and his affiliated entities, for around 1.44 trillion won ($1.22 billion).

The signing of the deal, which was supposed to take place at the end of September, was delayed by a month as the two sides had difficulty reaching an agreement on the price tag.

IMM PE will buy the stake for 1.44 trillion won, an about 4% discount to the original price of 1.5 trillion won. The PE firm will finance 300 billion won from its blind-pool fund, Rose Gold IV, with its strategic investor Lotte Shopping injecting approximately 300 billion won. The rest will be funded through debt financing.

IMM PE plans to diversify Hanssem’s business beyond its furniture and interior business. Lotte Group expects to create synergy between its Lotte Engineering & Construction and offline distribution channels like Lotte Himart and Lotte Mart and Hanssem after the deal is closed. The group’s strong overseas networks will also help Hanssem’s entry into overseas markets in the future.

Hanssem’s revenue increased from 1.7 trillion won in 2019 to 2.07 trillion won in 2020, with its operating profit increasing from 55.8 billion won to 93.1 billion won. Analysts expect the company to record revenue of 2.32 trillion won and an operating profit of 121 billion won this year. (Reporting by Ha-na Suh)