The Burton Car Company in Zutphen, the Netherlands, best known for their 2CV parts supply business and their 2CV based sports, announced yesterday that they are under new ownership.
Brothers Burton, Iwan and Dimitri Göbel have sold 75 percent of the shares, saying: “We now have to look for another hobby.”
The new owner, a still unknown Dutch investor, is experienced in managing large companies. Burton Car Company’s personnel are in good hands, says Iwan, “I think they are trying hard to increase sales. But I do not expect them to change much. You also do not do that if you take over a successful football club.”
Burton was put up for sale two years ago, because the brothers thought it was time for something new, said Iwan Göbel. They will remain involved with the company in a more creative role and plan to still be in Zutphen one or two days a week.
The brothers started the business in 1995, which was then called Duck Hunt. In 1998 they started developing their own sports car: the Burton. In May 2000 it saw the light of day and at that time the company name was changed. By 2020 Burton Car Company became the largest sports car manufacturer in the Netherlands delivering the sports car as a DIY kit (from 4,499 euros) or completely finished in the factory (from 12,500 euros).
The company has grown rapidly in recent years. Last year, turnover even increased by 29 percent. “Profits have increased even faster”, says Iwan. “This is partly due to the sale of parts for the 2CV, in which we do enormous business worldwide. “We now have 44 employees, but my brother and I are not real managers. That is why we thought it was time for the next step.”
Burton Car Company made the news last year by supplying mouth masks to healthcare, when there was a chronic shortage of them. Hundreds of thousands of masks were sent to various hospitals, care institutions and funeral directors in the Netherlands and abroad. That trade has stopped now that the masks are widely available. “We still have about 100,000 face masks, but we will find something for that,” said Iwan.
Although the purchase price of the company was not disclosed, the asking price was reportedly 5 million euros. Although the Göbel bothers prefer not to disclose the exact purchase amount, when pressed if it was actually more than 5 million euros, they smiled and said, “Yes, let’s stop there.”
We hope the innovation, 2CV parts variety and attractive shipping costs, key attributes to their success so far, continue under the new management.