The Danish clothing group DK Company A/S has expanded its portfolio and acquired the Ball brand.
Ball will be housed in the Vejle division under the leadership of CEO Kasper Philipsen, DK Company announced in early November. This branch of the company also includes the womenswear brands Ichi, Fransa and Pulz Jeans as well as the menswear brands Blend, Solid and Casual Friday.
“We are proud and happy to announce the acquisition of Ball today,” said Philipsen. “Many people still know the brand from the 80s, when Ball was trend-setting, especially with jeans and sweatshirts. The more we looked into the brand, the more exciting the story is. Some of the original Italian factories are still active 50 years after the brand was founded.”
Under the DK Company, Ball’s products will be manufactured primarily in European factories, building on the brand’s history.
Expansion in Europe
Ball was founded in 1974 by Aldo Ciavatta in Rimini, Italy, and over the next few years expanded into European markets such as Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg (BeNeLux), Scandinavia and, in 1977, Germany.
With the expansion into Scandinavia, Hans Svarverud took over the company, who died in 1998. A few years later, Ball also came to a standstill.
It took more than 20 years for Nastassia Elm Bregengård to revive the brand in 2020. Since then, Ball has been particularly active in Scandinavia and is represented by “recognized retailers,” according to the statement. With the DK Company’s expertise in the areas of production and sales, the goal is now to spread the brand even further on the European markets. The company is also in dialogue with founder Aldo Ciavatta.
“We see great potential in further developing the brand, which appeals to a wide audience and has a fantastic story to build on,” said Philipsen. “We are already expecting an expansion of the product portfolio for the AW 2024 collections in order to broaden the collections and develop a strong jeans concept that both suits the target group and builds on the ball story.”