MONTRÉAL, Nov. 28, 2018 /PRNewswire/ – Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec announced that it is taking an equity interest totalling $200 million in Plusgrade, a leading provider of revenue solutions to the global travel industry. The transaction values Plusgrade at over CA$600 million.

With this backing, the company will continue to execute its expansion plan, which includes penetrating new international markets and expanding its suite of products. Since its founding in Montréal in 2009, Plusgrade has become one of the fastest growing technology companies, and was ranked in Deloitte’s Canadian Technology Fast 50 list in 2016 and 2017. Recently, it also received the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Leadership award, which recognizes the innovation and leadership of companies at the forefront of the Canadian technology sector.

Led by a solid management team, Plusgrade is rapidly expanding its team across its Montréal headquarters and its New York and Singapore offices.

Over 70 travel companies worldwide, including Air Canada, Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines, trust Plusgrade to deliver key revenue streams via software solutions for optimizing their seat inventory. Its signature product provides travellers with an opportunity to bid on upgrades to a superior class of service.

“Plusgrade has a unique and innovative business model that is revolutionizing practices in its industry. Meeting an airline industry need, their products have been quickly marketed around the world in the last few years,” stated Mathieu Gauvin, Senior Vice-President, Québec, at la Caisse. “This investment is aligned with our strategy of supporting the growth of Québec companies that prioritize innovation to drive their international development.”

In the context of this transaction, la Caisse acquired a portion of the shares held by TA Associates, a leading global growth private equity firm that will continue to be a major shareholder, alongside the management team and other investors.

“We are very excited to welcome la Caisse as our new institutional investment partner as we accelerate our growth into new markets and verticals,” said Ken Harris, Founder and CEO, Plusgrade. “The confidence that la Caisse and TA Associates have shown in Plusgrade is a testament to the value that our talented team is delivering across our global footprint of travel suppliers. We look forward to la Caisse joining our Board and providing valuable guidance as we pursue our strategic growth initiatives.”

Morgan Stanley Canada Limited served as financial advisor and Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP served as legal counsel to Plusgrade. Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP served as legal counsel to la Caisse.

ABOUT PLUSGRADE
Plusgrade is an award-winning technology company at the forefront of ancillary revenue and merchandising in the global travel industry. As the market-leading provider in its category of upsell solutions, Plusgrade is generating billions of dollars of new revenue opportunity and powering leading travel suppliers in more than 50 countries. Plusgrade is headquartered in Montréal with offices in New York and Singapore. For more information, please visit www.plusgrade.com.

ABOUT CAISSE DE DÉPÔT ET PLACEMENT DU QUÉBEC
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (la Caisse) is a long-term institutional investor that manages funds primarily for public and parapublic pension and insurance plans. As at June 30, 2018, it held CA$308.3 billion in net assets. As one of Canada’s leading institutional fund managers, la Caisse invests globally in major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. For more information, visit cdpq.com, follow us on Twitter @LaCDPQ or consult our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.

ABOUT TA ASSOCIATES
Now in its 50th year, TA Associates is one of the largest and most experienced global growth private equity firms. Focused on five target industries – technology, healthcare, financial services, consumer and business services – TA invests in profitable, growing companies with opportunities for sustained growth, and has invested in nearly 500 companies around the world. Investing as either a majority or minority investor, TA employs a long-term approach, utilizing its strategic resources to help management teams build lasting value in growth companies. TA has raised $24 billion in capital since its founding in 1968 and is committing to new investments at the pace of $1.5 to $2 billion per year. The firm’s more than 85 investment professionals are based in Boston, Menlo Park, London, Mumbai and Hong Kong. More information about TA Associates can be found at www.ta.com.

SOURCE Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec

Related Links

http://www.cdpq.com/

Hostaway has successfully gained a major foothold in the rapidly growing vacation rentals market, alongside its partners – Booking.com, AirBnb, and Expedia to name a few – who are streamlining the entire industry. Hostaway enables short-term property managers through an integrated SaaS system that has the ability to manage operations and increase their revenues, by integrating into all major channels (Airbnb, Booking.com, HomeAway, and more).

“Our customers are professionals whose traditional business models have been to rent out dozens of homes worldwide. Today, it is no longer enough to manage your properties on the one sales channel and everybody’s business model is to be present everywhere, all the time. Which is exactly what Hostaway offers,” says Marcus Räder, the CEO and co-founder at Hostaway.

Since its launch in 2015, Hostaway has grown to a global team of 30 members in Barcelona, Toronto, Helsinki, Melbourne, and Kiev. The team itself is made up of nearly 20 nationalities, a focus on gender equality, all the while speaking over 10 languages. Hostaway is currently looking for talent for their Sales, Customer Success, Engineering, and Marketing teams across Toronto, Barcelona and Helsinki, hoping to double their team by Jan 2019.

“Our focus on diversity and global culture as key values, is ultimately what has helped us achieve the success we have today,” says co-founder Mikko Nurminen. Elaborating on Hostaway’s culture he says “From the very beginning, we have made diversity, culture, and internationalism the core values to drive our business model. We were able to create high-functioning communication processes, cover all time zones to match our customers’ needs, and find the most talented people from all around the world.” In September 2018, Hostaway took all 30 of its team members to Barcelona for a 7-day company meetup.

The short-term rentals market continues to see rapid and steady growth, with a projected market valuation of $190 billion by 2021. Hostaway has their gears set on becoming the industry’s largest player.

Backed by one of Finland’s leading venture capital firms in the B2B software space, Vendep saw the value and potential in the Hostaway team, immediately deciding to get involved in their rapid growth and development.

“We were very impressed by Hostaway’s quick growth during the course of this year,” says Hannu Kytölä from Vendep Capital. “This success was achieved by building a seasoned team delivering world-class customer service on an easy-to-use channel management platform, which delivered what it promised: hassle-free growth for its customers.Vendep Capital is excited to back the Hostaway team on their journey to success and growth ahead.”

Since September 2018, Hostaway has been growing out of the top incubator in North America, the DMZ.

“DMZ has been a massive help for us. Their mentorship and network makes it easier for us to attract talent and accelerate our growth. The Toronto tech scene is booming and we’re right at the crux of this momentum with the rest of the big tech-leagues,” says Marcus Räder.

Hostaway has collected a total of EUR 2.4 million in funding from investors and Business Finland and has several successful Finnish serial entrepreneurs.

For additional information:

Marcus Räder, co-founder, CEO
+1 416 821 3601
marcus@hostaway.com
Mikko Nurminen, co-founder
+358 40 701 3135
mikko@hostaway.com

Photos
Team photo and management team Saber Kordestanchi, Mikko Nurminen, Alexandra Logushova, Robert Hoogendam ja Marcus Räder

Hostaway is an enterprise solution for managing short-term rentals. Hostaway offers all the tools a property manager needs to grow their business, reach the largest sales channels, delegate tasks, and optimize their performance in one place. For more information, visit www.hostaway.com

Vendep Capital Fund II invests mainly in Finnish startups offering software to B2B customers. Founded in April 2017, the target size of the fund is €40 million. The funds have been raised from Finnish private and institutional investors such as Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) and The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. The fund may make investments alone or as part of a syndicate. www.vendep.com

Landmark California company bridges gap between fitness and hospitality

NEW YORK & SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)– KKR, a leading global investment firm, and The Bay Club Company (“Bay Club”), a premier active lifestyle and hospitality company, today announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which KKR will acquire Bay Club from York Capital Management and minority investors, including JMA Ventures and Roxborough Group. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 1977, Bay Club operates a collection of active lifestyle campuses, welcoming more than 50,000 members throughout California. The clubs are designed with innovative amenities to support the company’s focus on Fitness, Sports, Family and Hospitality.

Bay Club is recognized as the pioneer of the urban sports resort. Over the past several years, Bay Club has assembled an experienced management team—a blend of fitness, hospitality, technology, and finance veterans. Under the direction of this team, Bay Club was given the opportunity to evolve beyond the fitness industry. As a result, the Company entered the realm of hospitality by grouping complementary properties into campuses and offering its members a range of high-end lifestyle amenities typically only found at country clubs and luxury resorts.

“At Bay Club, we are proud to have created California’s leading active lifestyle community. In partnering with KKR, we are excited to build even further on what we’ve accomplished thus far and bring our unique offering to even more communities across the country,” said Matthew Stevens, President and CEO of Bay Club.

“Bay Club’s pioneering and differentiated model is one of the few scaled platforms in a large and highly fragmented health and wellness industry, where members can find options that meet all of their – and their families’ – needs,” said Nate Taylor, KKR Member and Head of KKR’s Americas Consumer Retail team. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Matthew and the rest of Bay Club’s management team.”

KKR is making the investment through separately managed accounts and its balance sheet.

Bay Club is being advised by Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC as lead financial advisor, North Point Advisors LLC as co-financial advisor, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP as legal advisors. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett is serving as legal advisor to KKR.

About Bay Club
Headquartered in San Francisco, California, The Bay Club Company is an active lifestyle and hospitality company with a network of experiential campuses that welcome more than 50,000 members. The company operates across seven California campuses in the San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego markets, employing more than 4,000 people. For more information on The Bay Club Company, please visit BayClubs.com or its blog, OneLombard.com. The Bay Club Company is also on Facebook and Instagram.

About KKR
KKR is a leading global investment firm that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate and credit, with strategic manager partnerships that manage hedge funds. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns for its fund investors by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and driving growth and value creation with KKR portfolio companies. KKR invests its own capital alongside the capital it manages for fund investors and provides financing solutions and investment opportunities through its capital markets business. References to KKR’s investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds. For additional information about KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR’s website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co.

About York Capital Management
York Capital Management is a global private investment firm that was established in 1991. The firm manages approximately $18 billion in assets across public and private investment strategies, including its private equity platform, the York Special Opportunities Fund, which owns Bay Club. York Capital employs approximately 60 investment professionals and 200 total employees globally, located primarily in New York, London, and Hong Kong.

Media:
Bay Club:
Annie Appel, 415-901-9351
annie.appel@bayclubs.com
or
KKR:
Kristi Huller or Cara Major, 212-750-8300
media@kkr.com
or
York Capital Management:
Gasthalter & Co. for York Capital Management
Nathaniel Garnick/Kevin Fitzgerald, 212-257-4170
York@gasthalter.com

Source: KKR

July 25, 2018, Hong Kong

– Real estate private equity firm Gaw Capital Partners today announced that the firm, through its European Hospitality Fund I managed by GCP Hospitality, acquired a 50% stake in Spain’s leading boutique hotel brand, Hospes Hotel Group, of which its total asset is valued at €125 million, forming a joint venture with a Spanish investment company, Omega Capital.

Hospes Hotel Group is a highly respected brand in Spain with 10 properties. The group is recognized as a highly acclaimed brand and operator within the luxury and heritage boutique hotel segment.

Each hotel has been crafted in an artisan fashion, combining elements of heritage, design, local textures and technology together.

Hospes’ luxury boutique hotels are situated in various prime locations across Spain, including Madrid, Alicante, Granada, Valencia, Mallorca, Córdoba, Seville, Cáceres and Salamanca. The properties are in close proximity to some of Spain’s most prominent historical sites, each designed by respected and renowned architects to create their own unique atmosphere and style. Their facilities, including bars and restaurants, wellness centers and spas, have received 5-star ratings.

Goodwin Gaw, Chairman and Managing Principal of Gaw Capital Partners, said, “We are delighted to form a joint venture with Omega Capital through our European Hospitality Fund I managed by GCP Hospitality to acquire a 50% stake in Hospes Hotel Group. Entering the Spanish market with one of Spain’s most distinguished entrepreneurs marks an important milestone for Gaw Capital Partners and its hospitality platform, GCP Hospitality, as we look to expand our presence in Europe and tap the abundant opportunities in one of the world’s most popular tourism markets. We will further expand the Hospes brand by opening more properties in tourist areas and strategic cities within Spain and Southern Europe.”

Partnership with Croatia’s Brodosplit to build a new expedition ship by 2020

Eurazeo PME is set to become the new majority shareholder of 2RH Group (Shark, Bering, Segura and Cairn brands ), one of Europe’s leading suppliers of protective motorcycle and outdoor sports equipment.

Eurazeo PME announces the signing of an acquisition agreement, under the terms of which it will become the new reference shareholder of 2RH group, a longside management and Naxicap Partners. The goal shared by Eurazeo PME and its senior management is to step up the company’s growth trajectory by strengthening its leading position in France and Europe, in particular thanks to external growth operations.

Eurazeo PME will thus take over from Naxicap Partners, the majority shareholder since July 2015. The operation is due to be completed in July 2018. Founded in 2008 out of the Shark brand, the 2RH group designs and manufactures protective motorcycle and winter sports equipment.

In line with the company’s innovative strategy and spirit, the equipment meets the highest standards in terms of performance and safety. 2RH has a workforce of over 600 and has three production sites in France and abroad (Portugal, Thailand). The group currently generates over half of its sales outside France, principally in Europe, the world’s No. 1 market, where it is one of the industry’s leaders.

With a turnover of €100 million in 2017 and an organic growth of more than 10% per year since 2011, the group has already made two acquisitions –Trophy (Bering, Segura) in 2011 and Marlybag (Cairn) in 2016, enabling it to diversify its offering while reinforcing its distribution networks.

Eurazeo PME is keen to support 2RH’s management, led by Patrick François, its Chairman & CEO, in consolidating its leading position in the motorbike protective equipment sector, but also in the sports sector, through both organic growth and acquisitions. Eurazeo PME will be placing its international business network –with its offices, notably in the United States and Brazil – and its corporate expertise (digital, CSR, etc.) at the disposal of the group’s operational excellence strategy.

Erwann Le Ligné, Managing Director-Member of the Eurazeo PME Executive Board:

“We are very enthusiastic about the management team and the quality of growth of a group with solid fundamentals.

Eurazeo PME wishes to lend its support to the 2RH Group in its ambition to double in size over the next five years by supporting innovation and stepping up international development, notably through external growth operations.”

Patrick François, Chairman & CEO of 2RH Group:

“We are delighted by the prospect of Eurazeo PME, a long-standing shareholder, accompanying us in stepping up our development. The presence of a professional investor such as Eurazeo PME at our side gives us the confidence to envisage new external European, and even global, growth opportunities.”

Angèle Faugier, Member of the Executive Board – Naxicap Partners: “We are delighted to be able to continue the journey alongside senior management and to accompany Eurazeo PME in this new, highly ambitious development phase. After doubling in size between 2015 and 2018, we were keen to lend our support to this next stage, which, furthermore, we shall be doing a longside a new majority shareholder̵ Eurazeo PME.”

About Eurazeo PME

Eurazeo PME is an investment firm and subsidiary of Eurazeo dedicated to majority investments in French SMEs with a value of less than €200 million. Eurazeo PME acts as a long-term professional shareholder, providing its portfolio companies with all the financial, organisational, and human resources they need for a sustained transformation, and guides them in creating sustained and, thus, responsible growth. This commitment is formalised and deployed through a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) policy.

In 2017 Eurazeo PME generated consolidated a net income of €1.1 billion and supports the development of Dessange International, Léon de Bruxelles, Péters Surgical, Vignal Lighting Group, Redspher, MK Direct Group, Orolia, Odealim, Smile and In’Tech Medical, which are solidly positioned on their markets and led by experienced management teams.