CARTA MUNDI, the European market leader in the production and sale of playing cards, strengthens its presence on the world market of tarot cards with the take-over of the Swiss editor Urania Verlags AG by her subsidiary AGM AGMüller.
Carta Mundi is European market leader in the production and sale of playing cards. The product line of Carta Mundi is divided into 2 business units. First there is the 'playing cards' unit, which includes 3 product groups. There is our own retail collection with the licence cards (e.g. Disney and Harry Potter) and the tarot cards. The advertising cards and the casino cards also make part of this unit. The second 'games' business unit includes the collecting cards (e.g. Pokémon) and the cards for games (e.g. Monopoly and Cluedo). Along with its headquarters and production centre in Turnhout, Carta Mundi also has 2 production sites in Germany and the USA. These 3 establishments annually produce around 200 million card games with nearly 550 employees. The 6 other sales offices in the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Hungary and Switzerland, together with local agents in several other countries, form a worldwide network. 97 % of the production is exported via this network to over 50 countries around the globe. Carta Mundi is held 50 % by the packaging group Van Genechten and 50 % by the graphics group Brepols. In 2000, Carta Mundi achieved a turnover of 90 million Euro.
This is the third take-over that Carta Mundi realises in a few years : in December 2000 the German 'Altenburger und Stralsunder Spielkarten' were taken over and in January 1999 the Swiss AGMüller, which will now integrate Urania Verlags AG.
AGMüller commercialises not only the typical Swiss 'Jass'-cards but also bridge, poker, patience and Happy Families playing cards. Its range also comprises children's playing cards and licence cards such as Papa Moll, Globi, Disney cards and the recently launched Harry Potter playing cards. In addition, the company is the world leader in the supply of esoteric cards. The most important markets are the USA and Germany, followed by Great Britain and France.
With the take-over of Urania Verlags AG, Carta Mundi enters for the first time a business field beyond the playing cards and takes-over a clearly complimentary business. Urania Verlags AG is the leading editor in German speaking countries of books on Tarot, Astrology, Divination and Spiritual Guidance. This business fits in well with the esoteric products that Carta Mundi distributes worldwide through AGMüller. The take-over creates a lot of possibilities for the further development of tarot cards and books which will enable Carta Mundi to strengthen its position on the world market of tarots. Before the take-over AGMüller already closely cooperated with Urania Verlags AG which is also situated in Neuhausen am Rheinfall. These premises will be retained and the entire staff as well as the existing network of representatives has also been acquired.
From 1st October on all esoteric products of Carta Mundi, cards as well as books, will be available on the internet (www.tarotworld.com).
