Translink Corporate Finance in Germany and Spain advised Medical Fomento Industrial (MFI), a vertically integrated health & safety group based in Bilbao, on the sale of its operating subsidiaries Ibervisión Servicios Ópticos S.L., Medop S.A. and Elaboria S.L. to the German stock-listed company, Fielmann AG. The purchase price for all shares in the companies is based on a cash and debt-free valuation of approximately € 70.8 million.

Founded in 1961 in Bilbao in Spain, MFI is a second-generation family-owned group which operates in three different business lines: (i) Retail of visual and acoustic products and services, (ii) Wholesale of industrial Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and (iii) Manufacturing of ophthalmic lenses and PPE. In 2021, the combined business generated external sales of € 35 million and employed 285 staff.

Ibervisión operates under the brand “Medical Óptica Audición” and focuses on optical and acoustic retail with digital channel and 19 stores in the Basque Country, Navarra and North of Castilla y León, servicing almost 1 million customers. Ibervisión is the market leader in the North of Spain.

Medop designs and distributes industrial PPE to more than 4,500 distributors with an in-house R&D department, being the market leader in the Iberian market in prescription eye protection. More than 1.5 million workers in 50 countries are equipped with its products.

Elaboria manufactures ophthalmic lenses and PPE for the companies of the group. It has its own lens surfacing and glazing lab that serves +200,000 lenses per day.

This acquisition accelerates the Fielmann Group’s expansion in Spain – Óptica & Audiología Universitaria joined the Fielmann Group in 2020 and reaffirms plans to reach market leadership in the medium-term.

“With its customer-centric values, an exceptionally talented team and a market-leading retail offering, the MFI Group is a great addition to the Fielmann Group. As Óptica & Audiología Universitaria and the MFI Group join forces, hearing and vision services in Spain will become better and more affordable for everyone. We trust that together we will continue to change the market to the benefit of customers and achieve market-leadership in the medium-term,” said Marc Fielmann, CEO of Fielmann Group.

“With the Fielmann Group, we gain access to an international supply chain and a superior omnichannel platform. We also join a family business that shares our customer-centric values as well as our people-first approach. We look forward to contributing our expertise in retail, lens manufacturing and protective equipment to better serve customers across Spain,” concluded Inés Gómez-Rubiera, CEO of MFI Group.