Gildo Pallanca Pastor's electric vehicle company invests in motorcycle brand.
Monaco based company Venturi has acquired French motorcycle manufacturer Voxan following its break-up at the end of 2009. The acquisition relates to the manufacturing molds, registered rights, and brand name only, since all the material assets were stripped during the liquidation. Founded in 1995 the French sports motorcycle manufacturer went bankrupt after just 6 years.
Pallanca Pastor spotted an opportunity to expand his Venturi business and reportedly paid 51,000 euros. Although Voxan as a company did not succeed, brand name is well-known, and the motorcycles are now prized by collectors. The Monegasque financier's research department in Fontvieille is working on an electric supersport motorcyle under the name Voxan, as it did with Venturi. Using the same designer, Sacha Lakic, the project is likely to take 3 years, after which the new electric models will be manufactured at Venturi's French plant in Sable sur Sarthe.
Venturi was founded in France in the 1980s but never found a market for its sports cars. Pallanca Pastor bought the company in 2001 and has turned it into a manufacturer of specialist cars such as the Fetish, the Eclectic and the Volage. He's now turning his attention to electric two-wheeled vehicles.
Links:
[1] http://www.monaco.mc//Pages/cache/offonce/Accueil/monaco_actualites/toute_l_actu/Societe/venturi_passe_a_la_moto_en_rachetant_voxan;jsessionid=700AF17C50AA12A73367CBE87E73DBA7.node1
[2] http://www.nicematin.com/article/economie/gildo-pallanca-pastor-a-repris-les-motos-voxan