Britain“s General Electric Company (GEC), which recently announced a restructuring of its operations into five divisions, is holding talks with at least four leading venture capital groups about the …
Britain“s General Electric Company (GEC), which recently announced a restructuring of its operations into five divisions, is holding talks with at least four leading venture capital groups about the sale of its consumer electronics business, which includes some well-known kitchen appliance brand names. GEC has a 50% stake in the General Domestic Appliances business, a joint venture with General Electric of America. The disposal is expected to value GEC“s stake at UK 150 million. The talks are still at an early stage but market sources say a venture capital sale is more likely than disposal to a trade buyer. They say GEC is conducting an auction of the business. Most venture capital groups would want to buy the entire business rather than only GEC“s stake. In 1996, GEC“s share of General Domestic Appliances made a profit of UK 11 million on sales of UK 250 million, down from profits of UK 19 million on sales of UK 256 million the previous year as a result of difficult trading conditions and increases in raw materials costs.