Louisville Slugger sells for $70M

Louisville Slugger, a 122-year-old brand that has become synonymous with America’s national pastime, will be sold later this year for $70 million in cash to a Finnish sporting goods company.

News of the deal came Monday from Louisville, Ky.-based Hillerich & Bradsby Co., which will sell the business, including the name and innovation rights, to Helsinki-based Amer Sports. The Finnish company also owns the Wilson sporting goods brand.

Over 100 million of the iconic wooden bats first made by woodworker John A. Hillerich in 1884 have been sold since the brand was registered 10 years later. Louisville Slugger had revenue of $75 million last year, and the bat is used by 60 percent of major league players, according to Bloomberg Business.

Amer Sports expects to complete its acquisition in the second quarter and is projected to record earnings from the brand next year.

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