Maison Berger Paris, a company supported by Argos Wityu, acquires Groupe Devineau.

With this transaction, Maison Berger Paris will double in size and move closer to becoming a major global player in home fragrances.

Paris (France), 4 September 2019 – Maison Berger Paris, world leader in the fragrance lamp market, is to acquire Groupe Devineau, a candle-making specialist. Supported by Argos Wityu since 2017, Maison Berger Paris is an investment of the Argos VII fund.

Recognized for its made-in-France products and distinguished by the Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant seal recognizing its heritage value since 2015, Maison Berger Paris embodies unique, internationally protected and patented expertise and know-how resulting from 120 years of research in catalysis. The company sells 800,000 lamps and 5 million litres of fragrance every year. Maison Berger Paris leverages an extensive network of more than 7,000 distributors in more than 50 countries and employs 150 people. The company’s revenue is close to €50 million, of which 75% is generated from exports.

Established in 1803, the Devineau group is France’s leading candle maker, currently headed by the fifth generation of a family of master wax makers. The group possesses invaluable know-how and offers a broad variety of products ranging from luxury scented and decorative candles to household candles to candles for religious use. The Devineau group employs a total of 350 people at three production sites and generates revenue exceeding €40 million.

With this acquisition, Maison Berger Paris is integrating complementary industry know-how, expanding its product lines and benefiting from the Devineau group’s strong presence in supermarkets and hypermarkets in addition to its subcontracting expertise. The Devineau group can now draw on Maison Berger’s experience in selective distribution as well as its vast international network.

This acquisition supports Maison Berger Paris’s external growth strategy and follows the March 2019 acquisition of Bescent, the start-up that invented the olfactory alarm clock. Maison Berger Paris is now an intermediate-sized enterprise generating revenue of more than €90 million and employing more than 500 people.

Olivier Sillion, CEO of Maison Berger Paris, said: “This business combination aligns with Maison Berger Paris group’s development strategy. We are currently the world leader in the niche market of fragrance lamps (commonly known as Lampe Berger lamps) and we want to expand our product portfolio to become a major player in the world market of home fragrances, by focusing our growth on the biggest segment, i.e. candles.”

Francis Clément-Devineau, CEO of the Devineau group, said: “Groupe Devineau’s 350 employees and I are delighted to join a company with a worldwide reputation for its technologies and expertise and that shares our values of quality and respect for consumers. Our family business is built on age-old know-how, a dedication to products crafted in France and a true passion for innovation. Our collaboration with Maison Berger Paris, whose candles we produce, began many years ago. This business combination is a logical next step to accelerate our mutual growth.”

Karel Kroupa, Partner at Argos Wityu: “For the past two years, we have supported Olivier Sillion and his team in implementing the company’s build-up strategy. Our goal is to help Maison Berger Paris offer its customers a comprehensive range of products and a high-end level of service everywhere in the world.”