NICI AG
The NICI GmbH (until December 2006 or NICI AG) is a company based in Altenkunstadt in Upper Franconia.
The company manufactures plush toys of its own design and merchandising products as a licensee. In the years 2005 and 2006, the mascot Goleo the Football World Cup 2006 was made in Germany for example.
History
It was founded on 1 June 1986, the company NICI M O Pfaff GmbH. It was converted into a public limited company under the name NICI AG 1999.
Insolvency of the NICI AG
The NICI AG employed to find in 2005, approximately 560 employees. The annual turnover was at that time at about 100 million euros. In May 2006, bankruptcy proceedings have been initiated, the number of employees decreased in the frame to around 400 by the end of November 2006.
Originally, the face of sluggish sales of World Cup mascot Goleo was given as the cause of insolvency by the board of NICI AG. This turned out after examination of company documents, by the receiver, however, found to be untenable. Rather million sales had been faked over the years. For fiscal year 2005, for example, 155 million euros given, when in fact only about 100 million euros were generated. In this way, additional credit lines should be swindled in the financing banks. Former Board and founder Ottmar Pfaff was arrested in May 2006. On 23 November 2006 also the commercial director and officer of the company was taken into custody. He is suspected to have been involved in the financial manipulations.
Ottmar Pfaff was sentenced on 27 June 2007 by the district court yard to six and a half years in prison for fraud.
Adoption and change of name
The insolvency administrator Michael Jaffé, who was also responsible for the execution of the Kirch Group, announced on 1 December 2006 that the American financial investor Strategic Value Partners has acquired the business operations and most of its assets and trademarks. The NICI AG was converted to the NICI GmbH. In February 2008, the NICI GmbH also announced the acquisition of Knaugle KG, which until then was employed as a direct addition to sales for NICI products and will now be incorporated into the main company.
Keychains
Examples of products
Jolly mowing
NICI was known primarily through the fabric sheep " Jolly mowing ", of which there are now several modifications, such as
- A Christmas sheep with red cap and red scarf
- Sheep hooded jacket or grinding
- Called a wolf in sheep's clothing " Jolly Wolf".