In May the Bank Assets Management Company (BAMC) announced the sale of its stake in Alpina to Czech company K&H. Alpina is a global leader in Nordic ski boots (see also the article on Local global leaders in this issue of e-newsletter) with 44.7 million euros of sales in 2021. The company located in the small town of Žiri, which does not focus solely on ski boots but rather on all types of footwear, had run into financial trouble. In 2015, the majority share of Alpina was taken over by the BAMC. The price agreed on between the BAMC and the new owners was not disclosed, yet is estimated by the financial press to exceed 20 million euros. K&H did not only offer the best price but also a “comprehensive development strategy, focusing on restructuring, improving production and sales, and developing the Alpina brand”. K&H is a part of the diversified Franco de Poisd'eau & CIE group, owned by Frantisek Pivoda.