Equistone sold GALA Group to Trend Glass
We have advised Equistone Partners Europe Limited (Equistone) and the management team on the sale of GALA Group GmbH (GALA Group), a leading German B2B manufacturer and one-stop shop for scented and unscented candles, home fragrances, and natural home decor, to TREND GLASS Sp. z o.o. (Trend Glass), a second-generation, family-owned group of companies.
With Trend Glass, the globally positioned GALA Group gains a new long-term and financially strong strategic owner, who will sustainably align the successful cooperation with multinational CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) brands with GALA Group’s established position in the field of scented candles and home fragrances, alongside its existing management team of Klaus-Magnus Junginger (CEO), Dawid Wrobel (COO), and Camilo Eugenio (CSO).
GALA Group is one of the leading European B2B manufacturers for scented and unscented candles formats, home fragrance products, and natural home decor, generating sales of more than €200m. With production sites in Germany, Hungary, Poland, and India, as well as c. 3,200 employees, the company has been selling candles around the world for over 50 years. GALA Group has unique, innovative service, development, and manufacturing capabilities to cover the whole spectrum of entry (private label) to premium customer groups. The company’s business model is based on a multi-channel approach, with products sold to CPG brands, retailers, drug stores, and design brands. Being a member of The European Candle Association, GALA Group meets all relevant environmental and social governance standards, operating best practices in production processes and recycling all unsold or defective products by melting them into the raw material mixture used for new products.
Trend Glass is a second-generation, family-owned group of companies operating in the fields of glass and energy production, energy trading, logistics services, and real estate. The company generates approximately €500m in revenue with more than 1,000 employees. Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Radom, Poland, Trend Glass operates in the glass business, a fully integrated glass melting and forming facility specialising in glass products such as kitchenware, vases, bottles, and jars for candle holders. Trend Glass produces approximately 300 million pieces annually and supplies to more than 300 customers worldwide, including IKEA, Carrefour and ACTION, for whom Trend Glass has been a supplier for over 20 years. Trend Glass maintains high-quality standards through automated and manual testing processes and is committed to sustainability by pursuing a climate-neutral strategy and participating in ESG certification programs. Trend Glass has been a trusted and long-standing glass supplier to the GALA Group for 10 years.
Equistone is an independent private equity firm investing in different sectors across Europe.
This journey has certainly been a demanding one, but we’ve achieved a truly exceptional outcome. We’re incredibly happy with the strategic direction this deal sets for GALA Group, and we are particularly grateful for the steadfast and highly committed support from Clearwater, whose expertise was invaluable in navigating this complex process. With Trend Glass, a long-term and existing supplier relationship, and with its supporting partners PFR and CVI, we identified a very successful new owner enabling GALA Group to follow its reorganisation and expansion opportunities across key markets such as the US, Europe, India, and GCC, capturing market share in developed and emerging regions.
We are very proud to have advised Equistone, the seller representatives, and the entire management team on the sale of GALA Group. This was a complex process with a huge number of stakeholders involved, but through dedicated collaboration and a deep understanding of the market dynamics, we were able to deliver an optimal outcome for all parties involved. We look forward to seeing GALA Group thrive under the new ownership.