Axel Johnson announced at the end of June the sale of KICKS Group to the Danish company Matas. The deal has now been finalized. With this transaction, Matas, KICKS, and Skincity create Northern Europe's strongest beauty group.

Over the past few years, Axel Johnson has shown strong growth and renewal, focusing on the group's 10/50 target. Last year, the company achieved a turnover of 118 billion kronor while also recording the group's strongest performance to date. With the sale of KICKS Group and the previous sale of Åhléns, Axel Johnson has significantly reduced its presence in consumer retail.

KICKS and Skincity are now part of the Matas Group, led by CEO Gregers Wedell-Wedellsborg. As a result, the role of CEO for KICKS Group has been eliminated.

Therefore, after successfully leading the work to complete the transaction, KICKS Group’s CEO Hanna Graflund Sleyman is leaving the company for continued assignments within Axel Johnson.

Mia Brunell Livfors, CEO of Axel Johnson, said:

"This deal creates a clear Nordic market leader, and my conviction is that this strengthens all involved businesses for the benefit of the end customers. From Axel Johnson, we wish the new owners and all employees all the best going forward, and I would like to extend a big thank you to the KICKS Group's management and employees for their hard work in developing KICKS and Skincity and for executing this deal.

This transaction also reflects the renewal and strategic focus that Axel Johnson is driving, where we have become a larger, stronger, and more diversified group with an even distribution between B2B and consumer activities, and where consumer retail is no longer as large a proportion. Alongside our focus on food, through Axfood and Martin & Servera, we have strong platforms in our industrial group Axel Johnson International and as major shareholders in Dustin. In addition, we have great ambitions in structurally growing areas linked to the major macro trends of our time, such as solar energy, future food, digital services and products, and health."