Licensing Agreements with Sangetsu Corporation

RNS Number : 2974Y

Sanderson Design Group PLC

12 May 2021

 

For immediate release

12 May 2021

RNS REACH

SANDERSON DESIGN GROUP PLC

("Sanderson Design Group", the "Company" or the "Group")

Licensing Agreements with Sangetsu Corporation

Sanderson Design Group PLC (AIM: SDG), the luxury interior design and furnishings group, announces a new, exclusive licensing agreement for its Morris & Co. brand in Japan and across east and southeast Asia with Japan's Sangetsu Corporation ("Sangetsu"), the market leader in the interiors industry in the region. The Group has a strong existing relationship with Sangetsu, having worked together for several years in Japan and southeast Asia.  

Under the terms of the new agreement, Sangetsu will become the exclusive licensee of Morris & Co. wallpapers in 14 countries in east and southeast Asia including Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand.

Sangetsu will also have non-exclusive licensing rights to Morris & Co. wallpaper in China and Hong Kong. In all 16 countries, Sangetsu will have non-exclusive rights to Morris & Co. fabrics, vinyl flooring and carpet.

This agreement, which follows the continuing global growth of the Morris & Co. brand, creates the possibility of achieving the full potential of the Morris & Co. brand throughout east and southeast Asia.

The Group has also signed a licensing agreement with Sangetsu for Scion brand wallpapers, initially for Japan only. The initial period for both the Morris & Co. and Scion licensing agreements is four years.

The new Morris & Co. agreement is complementary to existing agreements in Japan with other licensees for Morris & Co. product types such as bedding.

The Group has worked closely with Sangetsu since 2017 in Japan; it has also worked since 2014 in southeast Asia with Singapore-based Goodrich Global Holdings, which is now a fully owned subsidiary of Sangetsu.

Steve Yasuda, Chief Executive Officer of Sangetsu Corporation, commented : "I am very pleased to have agreed this strategic alliance with Sanderson Design Group. For the past five years we have worked with Sanderson Design Group to create new wallpapers and fabrics based on their design archives and have been very impressed by their designers, who have outstanding insights and capabilities.

"Morris & Co. is a long-loved brand in Japan and we are very much excited to create and launch new Morris & Co. products for Japan, the east and southeast Asian markets through this strategic alliance with Sanderson Design Group."

Lisa Montague, Sanderson Design Group's Chief Executive Officer, said: "I am delighted to enter into these licensing agreements with Sangetsu Corporation, a market leader in Japan and throughout east and southeast Asia. The Morris & Co. licensing agreement is particularly exciting because Sangetsu has the market position and distribution to unlock the full potential of the Morris & Co. brand throughout the region in wallpapers, fabrics and floor-coverings."

For further information:

Sanderson Design Group PLC	c/o Buchanan [phone]
Lisa Montague, Chief Executive Officer
Michael Williamson, Chief Financial Officer
Caroline Geary, Company Secretary
Investec Bank plc (Nominated Adviser and Broker)	[phone]
David Anderson / Alex Wright / Henry Reast
Buchanan	[phone]
Mark Court / Sophie Wills / Toto Berger / Charlotte Slater

[e-mail]

Notes for editors:

About Sangetsu Corporation

Sangetsu Corporation is a unique interior products company in Japan, which designs, procures, stocks, markets and delivers wallpapers, floor coverings, carpets and fabrics.

As group companies, Sangetsu Corporation owns a wallpaper manufacturer, interior furnishings installation company and exterior products wholesaler in Japan.

Sangetsu Corporation has over 50% market share of wallpapers and about 40% share of floor coverings and carpets in Japan, and covers both residential and contract markets.

Sangetsu Corporation's overseas businesses are through its subsidiaries. Its 100% subsidiary company, Koroseal Interior Products, is a major wallcoverings producer and distributor in the North American market.

In Asia, 100% subsidiary Goodrich Global Holdings and Sangetsu-do Inc are working aggressively through their local subsidiaries in China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Dubai. They also have strong marketing channels to other countries.

Sangetsu Corporation has about 1,500 employees and a group total of about 2,700 people.

For further information please visit: https://www.sangetsu.co.jp/english/

About Sanderson Design Group

Sanderson Design Group PLC is a luxury interior furnishings company that designs, manufactures and markets wallpapers, fabrics and paints. In addition, the Company derives licensing income from the use of its designs on a wide range of products such as bed and bath collections, rugs, blinds and tableware.

Sanderson Design Group's brands include Zoffany, Sanderson, Morris & Co., Harlequin, Scion, Anthology, Clarke & Clarke and Studio G.

The Company has a strong UK manufacturing base comprising Anstey wallpaper factory in Loughborough and Standfast & Barracks a fabric printing factory, in Lancaster. Both sites manufacture for the Company and for other wallpaper and fabric brands.

Sanderson Design Group employs approximately 600 people and its products are sold in more than 85 countries worldwide. It has showrooms in London, New York, Chicago, Paris, Amsterdam and Dubai.

Sanderson Design Group trades on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol SDG.

For further information please visit: www.sandersondesigngroup.com

 

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