NEW YORK, Oct 14, 2020 – Argand Partners, LP (“Argand”), a leading private equity firm focused on the industrial sector, today announced that its portfolio company, Cherry GmbH (“Cherry”), the world’s leading global designer and manufacturer of high-precision keyboard PC gaming switch technology, has completed the acquisition of Theobroma Systems Design and Consulting GmbH (“Theobroma”), a leading developer and manufacturer of embedded platform systems.
Theobroma is a developer of hardware and software solutions for a range of end-markets. Its products are used in a variety of applications including robotics, surveillance, digital signage, smart retail, human machine interface/automation, and artificial intelligence. The company is headquartered in Vienna, Austria.
This transaction represents the first of several strategically valuable bolt-on acquisitions planned for Cherry under Argand’s ownership. Cherry is the world’s leading global designer and manufacturer of high-precision keyboard switch technology for PC gaming and professional use computing peripheral products. The company designs and manufactures premium key switches for mechanical keyboards, branded gaming peripherals, computer input devices (including mice and keyboards), and products for high-security and point of sale peripheral applications.
Theobroma designs and develops the security software and hardware technology for embedded systems. The acquisition of Theobroma secures critical security technology for Cherry’s high-security peripheral infrastructure products and brings Theobroma’s significant development expertise in-house. Future applications are anticipated to include payment solutions and enhanced software functionality across Cherry’s broader product portfolio.
Dino Sawaya, Principal at Argand, commented, “We are delighted to support this strategic acquisition and welcome Theobroma into the Cherry family. Theobroma solidifies Cherry’s technology leadership in the development of data input devices designed for use in high-security environments, which are increasingly important in a highly connected world where cyber security threats are only growing in frequency and severity. The acquisition of Theobroma is a great example of the Argand playbook – a proprietary transaction that amplifies our portfolio company’s existing competitive advantages, that is highly synergistic, and lays the foundation for accelerated expansion under our ownership.”