News

Clifford Chance Advises Arçelik on its Formation of a New Standalone Home Appliance Business

Clifford Chance has advised Arçelik A.Ş., one of the world's leading home appliances and consumer durables companies, on the establishment of a joint venture between Arçelik's subsidiary Ardutch B.V. and Whirlpool Corporation's subsidiary Whirpool EMEA Holdings LLC to create a new standalone business in the European home appliances sector.

Both companies will transfer their European subsidiaries to the new standalone business, which will combine their manufacturing expertise, European appliance brands, distribution and sales networks and will also build on both companies' strong track record in, and commitment to, innovation and sustainability. The new company will have production sites across multiple European countries with more than 20,000 employees with a combined net revenue of approximately EUR 6 billion.

Arçelik A.Ş. is a global company with 45,000 employees in 53 countries, 30 production facilities in 9 countries, and 12 brands. In 2021, the company achieved a consolidated turnover of EUR 6.5 billion. It holds up to 3,000 international registered patent applications. Arçelik is the first and only company from its industry to receive the Terra Carta Seal from the former Prince of Wales, and its vision is 'Respecting the World, Respected Worldwide.'

The cross-border team that advised on the project included several Clifford Chance offices in Europe, including Prague, London, Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris, Milan, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Warsaw and Bucharest, as well as the New York and Washington offices in the US. The transaction was led by the Prague office's Managing Partner Alex Cook and Partner Gareth Camp from the London office, with support from relationship partner Itir Çiftçi from the Istanbul office.

The core One Europe corporate team included Jeroen Thijssen (Partner), Mark Jan Arends (Partner), Michal Jašek (Counsel), James Lloyd-Thomas (Senior Associate), Stanislav Holec (Senior Associate), Adnan Syed (Senior Associate), Sebastiaan van Steenbergen (Associate), Tomáš Procházka (Associate), Sabrina Spoor (Associate), Emma Boobbyer (Associate), Daniel Redmond (Associate), Martin Hrachovina (Junior Lawyer), Dávid Herich (Junior Lawyer), Jordan Gulwell (Trainee) and Lauren Park (Trainee).

Anti-trust advice was provided by, among others, Anastasios Tomtsis (Partner), Aleksander Tombinński (Counsel), Jonathan Blondeel (Associate), Helga Gudmundsdottir (Associate), Ana Hergouth (Associate), Jonathan Blondeel (Associate) and Avani Joshi (Associate) and Valia Aravantinou Zafeiri (Trainee Lawyer).

UK, Dutch and US tax advice were provided by, among others, Richard Kalaher (Partner), Michiel Sunderman (Partner), Paul Seraganian (Partner), Edward Page (Director), Georgia Whiteside (Associate), Tali Lee (Associate).

IP and TSA support were provided by, among others, Don McCombie (Partner), Zayed Al Jamil (Partner), Lauren Royers (Senior Associate), Midori Takenaka (Senior Associate), Laura Hartley (Associate), and Hemin Hazar (Associate).

Employment and pensions advice were provided by, among others, Clare Hoxey (Partner), Chinwe Odimba-Chapman (Partner), Sonia Gilbert (Partner), Floris van de Bult (Partner), Cécile Zoro (Counsel), Matthew Preston (Senior Associate), Olukayode Sonuga (Senior Associate), Florence Wong (Senior Associate), Sanne Blankestijn (Associate) and Leon Kidd (Associate).