Boston-based supplier Rocketbook (PPAI 737148, S3) has been acquired by Clichy, France-based BIC in a deal worth $40 million and a deferred consideration based on Rocketbook’s future performance. The acquisition was finalized on December 15.

Rocketbook’s flagship products include the Core and Fusion notebooks, brandable and reusable notebooks used with erasable pens and powered by the Rocketbook cloud-connected application. The move brings BIC back into the promotional products industry following its sale of BIC Graphic North America—which officially rebrands as Koozie Group on January 1, 2021—to H.I.G. Capital, a global U.S. private equity firm, in June 2017.

Founded in 2014 by Joe Lemay and Jake Epstein, Rocketbook will report $32 million in net sales this year, up 35 percent year over year, according to a BIC news release. Rocketbook products are sold directly by the company into the promotional products industry as well as through suppliers VisionUSA and Leed’s.

"There is great synergy between BIC and Rocketbook," says Hannah Shaw, senior sales manager at Rocketbook. "BIC’s entrepreneurial spirit, values and vision for the future of the category are aligned with how we work and where we want to go. Our innovative products, coupled with BIC’s industry expertise, retail reach and global footprint, offer substantial growth opportunities. The entire Rocketbook team remains on board, and we will continue to add to it!"

Over the past 75 years, BIC has become one of the world’s most-recognized consumer brands and its products are sold in 160 countries around the world.