Adidas on Thursday announced the sale of CCM, its iconic hockey brand, for $110 million.
Birch Hill Equity Partners, a Canadian private equity firm, is buying the storied 118-year old company.
The deal confirms an exclusive story in The Post on July 20 about the expected deal.
Adidas is lending Birch Hill money equal to at least one-third of the purchase price, a source familiar with the situation said.
The seller financing was necessary after traditional lenders were not comfortable lending to CCM in a leveraged buyout since the Weston, Ontario, company has been losing money, the source said.
Reebok bought CCM, maker of hockey helmets and sticks, in 2004 for nearly $400 million, including debt. The next year, Adidas bought Reebok.
CCM’s value, and its business, have fallen since then. Its market share of the hockey equipment business stands at roughly 35 percent. Rival Bauer has a roughly 50 percent share.
Adidas, with this merger agreement and the earlier sale of its TaylorMade golf division, is now close to exiting the hard goods space.
Adidas could not be reach for comment beyond its announcement.
