Elis

M&A Activity • Sep 30, 2015

Elis continues its growth strategy in Latin America and acquires the number one player in Chile

Puteaux, September 30, 2015 – Elis, the leading multi-services group in Europe and Brazil, specializing in the rental and maintenance of professional clothing, textile articles, hygiene and well-being appliances, has completed the acquisition of the number one player in Chile, Albia. Elis acquired Albia's shares from a private equity fund managed by Ecus Private Equity and from Albia's management.

Albia is a clear market leader with c. 25% of market share and operates 8 laundries across the country, mainly serving clients in the healthcare, hospitality and mining industries. Its national network covers the largest cities in Chile, including Santiago and Valparaiso.

Albia is expected to finish 2015 with revenues of c. CLP14 billion or c. €18 million. It will be consolidated in Elis' financial statements from 1st October onwards.

Chile has the highest GDP per capita in South America. The country enjoys a favorable economic environment along with political and social stability. This, in our view complements our business strategy. With this acquisition, Elis is continuing its value-creative approach of strategic targeted bolt-ons. After becoming the market leader in Brazil in 2014 with the acquisition of Atmosfera, the Group is now the number one player in a fragmented and promising South American market which has a number of consolidation opportunities.

Commenting on this announcement, Xavier Martiré, CEO of Elis, said:

"The acquisition of the market leader in Chile enables the Group to enter a new existing market with a good outlook for both organic and external growth. We will leverage our strong positions in Brazil and Spain to quickly integrate Albia into our network. Furthermore, we are delighted to welcome Albia's very experienced management team to Elis. Additionally, the transfer of know-how and purchase synergies should contribute to Elis' profitable growth trajectory going forward."

About Elis

Elis is a leading multi-services group in Europe and Brazil, specialized in the rental and maintenance of professional clothing and textile articles, as well as hygiene appliance and well-being services. With more than 19,000 employees spread across 12 countries, Elis consolidated turnover in 2014 was €1.331 billion and consolidated EBITDA reached €429 million. Benefiting from more than a century of experience, Elis today services more than 240 000 businesses of all sizes in the hotel, catering, healthcare, industry, retail and services sectors, thanks to its network of 275 production and distribution centers and 13 clean rooms, which guarantees it an unrivalled proximity to its clients.

Contact

Investor Relations:

Nicolas Buron, Investor Relations Director – Phone: +33 1 41 25 46 77 - nicolas.buron@elis.com