Thunder Tiger Corp (雷虎科技) yesterday announced plans to acquire Associated Electrics Inc, the US manufacturer of the world's top brand of radio-control race cars.
"Our board meeting approved the takeover today. President Lai Chun-lin (賴春霖) and General Manager Hsieh Tsai-yun (謝彩雲) will fly to the US in early July to seal the deal," Thunder Tiger Spokesman Liu Chao-ching (劉朝清) told a reporter by phone.
Thunder Tiger will pay US$9.5 million to acquire the Los Angeles-based Associated Electrics, and will allow the company to continue to operate under its current name.
Associated makes radio-control race cars and last year it ranked as the world top brand and came in seventh in terms of radio-control car sales. Thunder Tiger came in sixth.
The acquisition follows six years of successful cooperation between the two firms. Associated allows Thunder Tiger to make 48 percent of Associated radio-control race cars on an ODM (Original Design Basis) and has the rest made in the US. After the buyout, Thunder Tiger will take over the production of the other 52 percent of Associated race cars.
"We think it is a very good deal because we are paying US$9.5 million to buy a company whose net profits was US$1.5 million dollars last year," Liu said.
"Our short-term goal is to sell Associated model race cars to Europe, and long-term goal is to create new markets for our products and lower product price," he said.
Currently Associated, with a staff of 70 designers, sells 90 percent of its products in the US.
Thunder Tiger has factories in Taiwan and China and a distributing center in the US and Germany.
In 2004, Thunder Tiger's revenues totalled US$37.6 million and net profits hit US$6.5 million.
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