VAN MERKSTEIJN INTERNATIONAL ACQUIRES CONTROLLING INTEREST
IN MISTRAL INTERNATIONAL

The heyday of the Twente textile barons may be well and truly over, but for the Van Merksteijn family business, the conquest of the fashion world by the Mistral sport and clothing brand has only just begun. The key figure of the self-made entrepreneurial family is the 22-year-old Mistral Styling Director, Stephanie van Merksteijn.

Via its subsidiary company, Van Merksteijn Fashion BV, the family company of Van Merksteijn BV run by the steel wire magnate Peter van Merksteijn (52) has become a majority shareholder in Mistral International BV. Mistral is more than thirty years old and has been developed into a world brand by entrepreneur Ado Huisman who has also been involved in the expansion of the Gaastra and Craft clothing brands. The day-to-day management will be in the hands of Huisman and Stephanie, the 22-year-old daughter of Peter van Merksteijn. In the new configuration, Huisman will also retain an interest in Mistral International BV. Outside of Europe, Mistral has recently achieved considerable success. At the beginning of this year, a licensing deal was signed in Buenos Aires with the Argentinean company Sur Pacifico for a large part of Latin America. Currently, Mistral is represented in more than fifty countries.

Huisman is absolutely enthusiastic about the collaboration with the Van Merksteijn family and in particular with Stephanie. With the participation of Van Merksteijn Fashion, Huisman expects to be able to grow further with Mistral International. The parent company, Van Merksteijn International, is a cash-rich enterprise. This company specialises in construction steel, reinforced concrete and fencing and is worth an estimated annual turnover of half a billion euros. Moreover, Stephanie van Merksteijn is very well acquainted with the fashion world. She is in fact the owner of an exclusive fashion store in and has taken a textile course.

The entrepreneurial Van Merksteijn family suits a dynamic and sporty brand such as Mistral very well according to Huisman. This family from Almelo actually has a weakness for top speed in terms of competition. Father, Peter senior, and son, Peter junior, as well as daughter Stephanie are fervent devotees of rally car racing. Last year, Van Merksteijn, together with former Formula 1 driver Jos Verstappen and Jeroen Bleekemolen, won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Porsche RS Spyder. In addition, Van Merksteijn took part in the Paris-Dakar Rally.

With a controlling interest in Mistral International, the Van Merksteijn family business will henceforth stand on two cornerstones: metal, sport and fashion. Self-made entrepreneur Peter senior (52) leads the European steel wire empire together with his son Peter junior (26) whilst Stephanie van Merksteijn and Ado Huisman together make up the management of Mistral International BV. The head office of Mistral International is already situated in Almelo.

Furthermore, Van Merksteijn Fashion has also acquired a controlling interest in Mistral Division Europe BV whereby Stephanie and Semih Berrak together take care of the day-to-day management of this company. Mistral Division Europe has a Mistral licensing deal for the whole of Europe with the exception of Spain and Portugal.

“I will now be managing the styling and development of the collections and that fits in seamlessly with my greatest passion: clothing”, says Stephanie. “Mistral is a straightforward, fresh and natural brand with a fabulous brand mark and logo with a rich history. Mistral suits me very well. I am very sport inclined just like my entire family.”

Stephanie Merksteijn and Semih Berrak have in the meantime closely examined all the collections. In addition, new stylists have been taken on. “Together with them, I want to take the collections to a higher level”, adds Stephanie. “For this, special attention needs to be given to fresh summery colours which are so totally Mistral.”

She particularly has high expectations for a swimwear collection to be newly developed in the higher price segment. “But the brand needs to have new life breathed into it across the entire collection. Particularly in Europe there is still a lot of work to be done.”

But however successful the further expansion of Mistral may be, the brand may never renounce its roots, emphasises Stephanie. “Mistral was originally a coastal lifestyle brand and houses a Mediterranean feeling. This should not be changed for any reason.”

Mistral is indeed inextricably linked to water and wind. Drop the name Mistral in a sporty circle and there is a big chance that the link will immediately be made with windsurfing and kitesurfing. In short, there is a strong connection with water sports in general, including sailing. Hardly surprising since besides sporty fashion clothing, Mistral guarantees for high quality boards and sails.

The originally Swiss brand was founded in 1976. Actual world fame for Mistral came with the help of the American Robby Naish. The American windsurfer and kitesurfer from Hawaii counts as one of the greatest American sporting heroes. In 1976 Naish became the world champion windsurfer. He was then only thirteen years old. Mistral linked its name with the young Naish and formed a “Mistral Dream Team” around him which was particularly influential in the eighties. The successes of Naish and his team mates certainly made an impact on Mistral. In 1985, the company had a record turnover of more than 100 million euros. Nowadays, Mistral is still the trendsetter in surfboards.

The Mistral sport and fashion lines do not only include sophisticated sportswear such as clothing and shoes. The fashion label also distinguishes itself with exclusive bags, sunglasses and watches. Whether the wearers are active on the water or on dry land, Mistral is there. “Wherever the wind blows, you will find Mistral”, is in fact the motto of the brand.

Since 1985, the name of Mistral is likewise mentioned in the same breath as ‘Club Mistral’. This organisation focuses purely on the true water sports fan and currently has seventeen beautiful, exclusive holiday resorts which reach from the Mediterranean Sea and Latin America as far as the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. That is why the organisation maintains as its rule of thumb: wherever first class wind and water can be found, you will find Club Mistral.

For more information: www.mistral.com and www.van-merksteijn.nl