STIC Investments Seeks to Acquire Leading Laundry Franchise CleanTopia

Sale Price Estimated at 600 to 650 Billion Won

Private equity firm STIC Investments is seeking to acquire CleanTopia, the leading laundry franchise in South Korea.

According to the financial investment industry on August 22, JKL Partners, the current owner of CleanTopia and a private equity management firm, has decided to designate STIC Investments as the preferred bidder for the sale. JKL Partners acquired CleanTopia for 190 billion won in August 2021. Industry sources estimate that the current sale price of CleanTopia will be in the range of 600 to 650 billion won.

A Cleantopia branch in downtown Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

CleanTopia is the largest laundry franchise company in South Korea, operating 135 branches and more than 3,100 franchise locations nationwide. The service model involves franchisees collecting laundry, which is then processed at large-scale factories and returned to customers. The company also operates a business-to-business (B2B) laundry service targeting hospitals, hotels, and other institutions.

Last year, CleanTopia recorded sales of 279.7 billion won and an operating profit of 31.1 billion won.

STIC Investments is a domestic private equity management company listed on the KOSPI (Korea Exchange), and is well known for its previous investments in companies such as LIG Nex1 and Iljin Materials.