Earlier this year, Club Car officially signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Denmark-based Garia brand. Garia produces low-speed electric vehicles for consumer golf markets. The company was previously owned by Lars Larsen Group before the purchase. Like most private company purchases, the financial terms of the deal were not released. Club Car is owned by a portfolio company, Platinum Equity, that has its hands in multiple industries such as information technology and logistics.
Founded in 2005, Garia is best known for their innovations in the luxury side of the golf cart market. Garia gave the classic golf cart a little style with fresh takes and Scandinavian flair. It was not until 2015 that the company expanded its product line, introducing Garia Utility. Garia Utility produced utility vehicles, as you could guess, for multiple industries. These industries include schools, hospitals, parks, and so on.
Alongside acquiring Garia, Club Car also acquired Melex. Melex was previously acquired by Garia back in late 2021. This purchase allowed Garia to grow in the utility market rapidly. Melex manufactured lightweight utility vehicles out of Poland. They produced many on and off-street products, including compact cargo utility vehicles and multi-passenger vehicles.
“We are excited to welcome their teams to the Club Car family,” Mark Wagner, president of Club Car said. “We have great respect for Garia and Melex, which design and build some of the most impressive electric golf, leisure and compact utility vehicles in the world”.
Courtesy Garia
Courtesy Garia
He continued to say, “our product lines complement each other nicely and with very little overlap… Which is great news for our dealers and customers in Europe and the United States, who will have access to a wider range of zero-emission, on and off-road vehicles at a greater variety of price points.”
This purchase allows Club Car to tap into the luxury market of golf carts, something which they have not been able to do. Garia’s golf consumer vehicles are primarily luxury products, priced and designed for the higher-end markets and consumers. The acquisition of Melex and Garia allows club car to sell products they were not able to previously.
Garia CEO Jakob Holstien spoke on the acquisition, saying, “Club Car is the perfect partner and will immediately open new opportunities for growth across our entire product portfolio… Club Car’s extensive dealer network, combined with the operational benefits, we can achieve with substantially increased scale, will help us take our brand to a brand-new level.”
Courtesy Garia
Club Car was acquired by Platinum Equity in 2021. Platinum Equity Partner, Jacob Kotzubei was delighted about the purchase, as sustainable vehicles are more desired in the market, saying, “The addition of Garia and Melex’s all-electric fleets will strengthen Club Car’s ability to meet that demand globally, and in the European utility market in particular, where governments and businesses are modernizing and electrifying their fleet vehicles”.
The Garia and Melex purchase is the first acquisition that Club Car has made since becoming part of the Platinum Equity ownership portfolio.
Club Car is looking for more ways to reach more markets geographically as quickly as possible in new product categories. “This acquisition is an important step in delivering on that strategy. We will continue seeking more opportunities to grow the business organically and through additional acquisitions”.
This is undoubtedly an exciting time for dealers who sell Club Car products, as they will now be able to expand to more upper echelon clients instead of more economic consumers.
