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Christophe Piron leaves Bihr - replaced by Peter Hakanson
Bill Canady , the recently appointed CEO of Bihr distribution parent company Arrowhead Engineered Products ( AEP - Blaine , Minnesota ) has announced the appointment of Peter Hakanson to the position of Managing Director for Power Sports EU - a newly created role that appears to have been engineered to distance management of Arrowhead ' s European powersports industry subsidiaries from its other acquisitions in Europe , including its " Farm and Garden " businesses . Hakanson has effectively replaced former Bihr CEO Christophe Piron . Canady is quoted as stating that " Peter will provide leadership and strategic direction for Bihr distribution . This new
Wisconsin based Parts Europe owner LeMans Corporation . With warehouses in France and Spain , and corporate offices at Kontich near Antwerp , Bihr itself had been an active buyer of other powersports businesses here in Europe in the two years before being sold to AEP by Kontich based prior owner Alcopa . Those acquisitions had included Moto Direct / RST apparel and RaceFX in the UK , iPstore . be , and Paaschburg & Wunderlich / LSL in Hamburg . Canady stated : " Christophe Piron will work closely with Peter to ensure a seamless transition . We are thankful for Christophe ’ s leadership and contributions to the organisation . He
Christophe Piron is leaving Arrowhead subsidiary Bihr . His is being replaced as the head of the Bihr distribution operation by Peter Hakanson as Managing Director of new management entity Power Sports EU .
group includes the Bihr business that was founded in 1975 at Bartenheim , France , by Cyrille Bihr ; leading off-road performance specialist Vertex Pistons ( VP Italia ) in Italy and Hi-Level distribution in the UK . Canady , an insider at AEP ' s private equity owner Genstar Capital himself , only recently replaced the former AEP CEO John Mosunic , who oversaw the acquisition of Bihr here in Europe for an undisclosed sum thought to be in the region of € 500m , and major sevenwarehouse national PG & A distributor Western Power Sports ( WPS ) of Boise , Idaho - for a reputed $ 1.5bn - in the space of around eight months in 2022 . WPS was started in the early 1960s and is the owner of the FLY Racing MX apparel and accessory brand , among others . WPS had sales estimated in the region of $ 650m annually at the time of its sale to AEP . It is currently ranked the second largest powersports product distributor in the USA - after Janesville , has set up Bihr for a bright future . We wish him all the best in his new opportunity outside Arrowhead ." In the United States , AEP also owns other powersports industry brands such as All Balls Racing , Hot Cams , Pivot Works and Cylinder Works . The process of ownership consolidation that has characterised the parts , accessory and apparel industry in Europe in the past three years has shaken up the existing overcrowded distribution channels here . An already hugely competitive sector has become ever more so as market uncertainty during Covid , logistics issues , inflationary and recessionary pressures ( to say nothing of the war in Ukraine ) have made it very difficult for highly leveraged investments to show the required return . Highly paid but under pressure CEOs of private equity investment holding companies and their subsidiaries are generally the first casualties under such circumstances .
INTERNATIONAL DEALER NEWS - AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 2023 17