News Tag Heuer, owned by the LVMH group, has taken over the activities of the metal bracelets division of Morellato SpA, an Italian company based in Padua. The cost of the transaction was not revealed. As a matter of fact, the division of the Italian company became a company in its own right shortly before the buyout by Tag Heuer. It is now called Artelink and has a workforce of around 200.
Founded in 1930 in Bologna, Morellato symbolizes the Italian tradition of expertise in the production of metallic bracelets (steel and precious metals). The division from which Artelink arose had Tag Heuer as its main customer. Thus, as for its previous acquisitions in the field of subcontracting (Kohli for dials and Cortech for cases), Marin's brand is attracted first and foremost, in its move towards vertical integration of production, to companies with which it is already in partnership. The reason being not only that its main supplier is in difficulty, as was the case with Kohli, but also to ensure full control over a source of supply.
September 13, 2001
