Both parties hope to conclude the deal within the next few months, having obtained the necessary approvals and after finishing the consultation procedures.

The Christeyns Group, based in Ghent, employs 250 people and has subsidiaries in the Netherlands, France, Germany and the UK. It has a diverse range of activities, but the laundry division, which supplies industrial laundries with a full package of detergents and auxiliary chemicals, dosing equipment, water and energy saving equipment, represents half the consolidated turnover.

The deal will make Christeyns the number two company in the European laundry detergent sector and broaden its market to include Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Switzerland, Spain and Italy for the first time.

Christeyns managing director Alain Bostoen, says the planned takeover fits in perfectly with the laundry division’s growth strategy. It will expand the laundry business on a European scale and strengthen the company’s position. The professional expertise of its new employees will allow the company to make the most of its new market position.