This followed Gazal’s announcement on 25 October last year of the sale of Mambo inside the European Union to Blacks Leisure Group PLC, a UK outdoor and boardwear brand.

Partner Tim Bowley led the JWS team, with corporate partner Damian Reichel and IP partner Christine Ecob.

Speaking to Lawyers Weekly, Bowley said the deal has been a long-running process. “Our client Gazal bought Mambo back in 2000, and then last year they were undertaking a strategic review.”

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The firm looked after the international trademark aspects of the deal. Ecob said: “It provided a fascinating insight into a business that has established a diverse international trade mark portfolio including the iconic Mambo brand and a large range of detailed artwork for clothing,” she said.

Bowley said the deal was a complex one. He said the purchases will take the iconic company back to its surfwear roots. “Because it’s had such a wide trademark portfolio — sort of starting with Argentina and working through the alphabet to Zimbabwe — there was sort of a reasonable complexity. Maintaining that sort of trade mark portfolio is hard work,” he said.

“So there were various issues that had to be discussed with the purchaser so at that level it was complex but not unusual. It’s not unusual for those sorts of portfolios to be sold,” said Bowley.