MONTRÉAL, July 31, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) today announced a $6 million investment in Wooky Entertainment, a Montreal company specializing in the creation of games and toys mainly intended for the preteen market. This investment is part of CDPQ's strategy of supporting the most promising Quebec companies in their growth projects and favouring their international expansion.
Over the past seven years, the Wooky team, composed of artists and industrial designers, among others, has stood out for its creativity and its ability to develop a portfolio of more than 600 innovative products. Today, they are distributed in over 50 countries to 1,500 retailers, including the giants Wal-Mart, Target, Toys"R"Us and Tesco. Beyond its presence on the North American and European markets, the company is now seeking to strengthen its Asia-Pacific presence. Wooky opened its first office in Hong Kong at the beginning of 2015.
"Wooky represents exactly the type of company we want to support: an ambitious management team, an innovative product, a successful breakthrough into international markets," said Christian Dubé, CDPQ's Executive Vice-President, Québec. The worldwide success Wooky is already seeing and the place it has made for itself in the industry are mainly attributable to its team's vision and knowhow. This investment clearly illustrates that, regardless of size, when a project with strong potential is involved, CDPQ is on hand to accelerate the growth of Québec companies."
"We are proud of the confidence CDPQ has shown in Wooky. We were looking for a financial partner with a long-term vision, that clearly understands our growth objectives and can support us in our expansion," explained Kevin Richer, President and Founder of Wooky Entertainment. Ultimately, our objective is to rise to the top of the creative games industry."
ABOUT CAISSE DE DÉPÔT ET PLACEMENT DU QUÉBEC
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is a long-term institutional investor that manages funds primarily for public and parapublic pension and insurance plans. As at December 31, 2014, it held $225.9 billion in net assets. As one of Canada's leading institutional fund managers, CDPQ, which marks its 50th anniversary this year, invests globally in major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure and real estate. For more information: www.cdpq.com.
SOURCE Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Jean-Benoît Houde, CDPQ, 514-847-5493, [email protected]; Olivier Simard, Wooky Entertainment, 514 770-4472, [email protected]
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