CLSA exits Japanese uniform rental business Uni-Mate
Japan’s CLSA Capital Partners (CLSA CP) has sold 100% of uniform rental and cleaning business Uni-Mate to local private equity firm Karita & Company (K&C) for an undisclosed sum.
CLSA CP acquired Uni-Mate as a carve-out from conglomerate Marubeni Corporation in 2018. It invested via its Sunrise Capital III fund, which was mandated acquire companies with enterprise valuations in a range of JPY 5bn-JPY 15bn (USD 34m-USD 103m).
At the time, Uni-Mate – then known as Marubeni Mates – had about 700 corporate customers and a 6% market share in a highly fragmented segment. The core business revolves around supplying the likes of restaurants, shops, and medical facilities with uniforms. This includes a cleaning service and a tagging system for tracking data such as wearing history and a uniform’s whereabouts.
CLSA CP said in a statement that it helped the company establish a unique position in the industry through the enablement of value-added products, environmentally sustainable operations, and enhanced services through technology.
Uni-Mate’s feature technology is an artificial intelligence fitting function called AI Tailor that uses an imaging app to determine an employee’s uniform size in two to three minutes without taking measurements.
K&C was founded in 2007 by CEO Naobumi Karita, previously of restaurant operator Hiramatsu and Fuji Bank. His team includes alumni of Jafco, Citigroup Capital Partners Japan, and Morgan Stanley Capital. It pursues buyouts on a project-fund basis.
Recent activity in the textiles and clothing space includes the acquisition last year of denim jeans manufacturer Japan Blue.
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