Ascona sheds foreign owner, founder regains 100% control
Ascona Group, which produces furniture and sleep accessories, has completed a share buy-back from its foreign investor. The group's assets are now under the full, 100% control of its founder, Vladimir Sedov, the group said.
According to Kommersant, Sedov, who founded Ascona in 1990, sold 51% of his shares to the Swedish corporation Hilding Anders in 2010. The foreign shareholder subsequently increased its stake in the company to 73%.
IKEA stores, through which Ascona sold a quarter of its products, closed in Russia in 2022, but Hilding Anders continued operating in the country and financially helped the Russian subsidiary. However, in 2023, Hilding Anders decided to leave the market, Kommersant says.
Ascona's press release said that the management team has been retained and continues functioning to ensure process continuity and stability for its partners and clients.
"The return to single-person control enhances the company's managerial flexibility and removes the previous restrictions imposed by partner participation, allowing for faster decision-making and full realisation of strategic initiatives. . . The transition to full control by its founder strengthens Ascona's stability and opens up new opportunities for innovation and expansion of its product range and geographical presence," the group said in a statement.
Ascona plans to focus on investing in modernising and automating its production facilities, expanding production capacity and growing operational efficiency, "which will create additional jobs and strengthen its production capabilities". In retail, on the other hand, the company's priorities are to consolidate its flagship showrooms, develop e-commerce, and expand its expertise from the healthy sleep category to a broader range of furniture and home products.
"Ascona Group will continue to build up its presence in the CIS countries and further expand into friendly markets," the release said.