We have advised the founders and management of Gimmersta Wallpaper, a premium wallpaper designer and manufacturer, on the minority sale to Priveq, a private equity firm.
The story begins with Grandpa Folke who in 1925 started as an errand boy in a wallpaper shop at the age of 17. Decades later, building on a strong wallpaper heritage within the family, Irene and Christofer Gimmersta founded Gimmersta Wallpaper with the ambition of crushing white walls and revolutionising the industry through digital production and online sales. Innovation and a focus on quality proved to be a winning concept, and success followed. The accomplishments prompted the founders to seek a professional partner to support their goal of consolidating the market and become the market leader in the premium segment. Clearwater connected Gimmersta Wallpaper with Priveq, who turned out to be the perfect match for the founders and employees to support the company’s further growth journey.
Gimmersta Wallpaper designs, manufactures, and sells premium wallpapers to consumers and companies in over 100 countries through its portfolio of premium brands Rebel Walls, Sandberg Wallpaper, Happywall, and Hovia. Wallpapers are sold directly to customers via the company’s own websites and through a global partner network of retailers, interior designers, and distributors. The group was founded in 2012 by Irene and Christofer with the launch of Rebel Walls, a premium brand specialising in digitally printed wallpapers, alongside the acquisition of Sandberg Wallpaper. Since then, the portfolio has expanded to include Happywall and in June 2024, the British brand Hovia, both of which have been successfully integrated into the business model.
With Priveq, the founders have secured a partner able to further strengthen Gimmersta Wallpaper’s market position and support the company’s continued growth journey through intensified buy-and-build. The founders remain, with a majority ownership stake post-transaction, and will continue to take an active part in the company’s evolution going forward, together with Priveq.
