Company

Lantal Textiles AG from Switzerland acquires Royal Dutch Textile Mills J.A. Raymakers & Co BV from The Netherlands and its sister company British Velvets Ltd. from the United Kingdom, to combine with its Portuguese velvet mill Gierlings-Velpor, creating a strategic third business unit in the field of interior velvets.

 

Raymakers, established in 1773, is the leading interior velvet manufacturer, distributing its products via wholesalers, textile editors, contract specialists and manufacturers worldwide. With locations in Helmond and Gemert in The Netherlands and via British Velvets Ltd. in Burnley in Great Britain, Raymakers offers an innovative range of interior velvets, known for its finest, single yarn velvet, often tailored to the needs of its customers.

Lantal Textiles AG, established in 1886, based in Langenthal, is a leader in the design, production, and distribution of textiles and services for the international community of aircraft, bus, and railway operators as well as for VIP jets and superyachts. It was for the ground transportation market that Lantal acquired in 2017 Gierlings Velpor SA, velvet manufacturer in Portugal. This acquisition gave Lantal also a start in interior velvets.

 

Richard Oussoren, Owner of Raymakers; “The combination of two longstanding specialists in velvet manufacturing and developing it into a strong Velvet House with Raymakers as the leading company, is an opportunity for our customers worldwide. It secures our operations, provides for succession planning and will give a strong impulse to our product- and collection development. This year Raymakers celebrates 250 years of existence and I am pleased to have found in Lantal a solid partner that acknowledges our achievements and is offering us the possibility to further grow our position in the niche market of interior velvets.”

Urs Rickenbacher, CEO of Lantal Textiles; “This co-operation offers a strong impulse for further development of our Portuguese operation and, more important, the opportunity to build a new, third division in our company for specialty interior velvets. To emphasize the strategic importance of this, we have decided to acquire Raymakers. Our vision to bring together the interior velvet craftsmanship of Raymakers, its English subsidiary British Velvets and Gierlings Velpor, will no doubt result in a leading interior Velvet House with a strong emphasis on creativity and innovation. I am very curious how this interesting alliance will generate success for the customers, with its velvets”.

Thomas Burst, Vice President of Lantal Textiles; “We are looking forward to the co-operation with Raymakers to build our division for interior velvets under the guidance of Richard. His expertise and that of the Raymakers-team was an important starting point to take this decision.”

Richard Oussoren; “Apart from the craftsmanship of Gierlings Velpor, this co-operation also gives us a foothold in the strong and large textile industry in the North of Portugal. Personally, I feel well within the Lantal Group, offering a strong base for our customers, suppliers and employees.”

 

Raymakers, British Velvets and Gierlings Velpor will continue to offer and supply their products and collections as before via their respective sales organizations.

 

Helmond/Langenthal, June 2023