7.3.2015   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 80/26


Prior notification of a concentration

(Case M.7553 — PAI/Lion Adventure)

Candidate case for simplified procedure

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2015/C 80/11)

1.

On 2 March 2015, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (1) by which the undertaking PAI Partners SAS (‘PAI’, France) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation control of the whole of the undertaking Lion Adventure Coöperatief U.A. (‘Lion Adventure’, Netherlands) by way of other means.

2.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

PAI is a privately held private equity company and manages and advises a number of funds that own companies active in a variety of business sectors,

Lion Adventure is active in the retailing of outdoor sporting equipment, clothing, and footwear, and fashion through its ‘AS Adventure’, ‘Bever’, ‘Cotswold Outdoor’, and ‘North Face’ stores in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and the UK.

3.

On preliminary examination, the Commission finds that the notified transaction could fall within the scope of the Merger Regulation. However, the final decision on this point is reserved. Pursuant to the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (2) it should be noted that this case is a candidate for treatment under the procedure set out in this Notice.

4.

The Commission invites interested third parties to submit their possible observations on the proposed operation to the Commission.

Observations must reach the Commission not later than 10 days following the date of this publication. Observations can be sent to the Commission by fax (+32 22964301), by email to COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu or by post, under reference number Case M.7553 — PAI/Lion Adventure, to the following address:

European Commission

Directorate-General for Competition

Merger Registry

1049 Bruxelles/Brussel

BELGIQUE/BELGIË


(1)  OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the ‘Merger Regulation’).

(2)  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.