Employee Navigator Raises $34 Million in Growth Equity Financing

JMI Equity

BETHESDA, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Employee Navigator, a leading benefits administration & HR software provider, announced it has raised $34 million in growth equity funding from JMI Equity. The minority investment will go towards hiring across all functions and expanding Employee Navigator’s product offerings.

The company began licensing its benefits and HR products to insurance brokers in 2012 and has expanded its offerings to partner with the nation’s leading insurance carriers, payroll companies, and third-party administrators (TPAs) to provide a unified benefits and HR solution. Employee Navigator’s growth has accelerated over the past few years; they now support over 2,000 of the nation’s leading insurance brokers, over 50,000 employers, and over 10 million employees and dependents.

“As our business matured, we became convinced of the opportunity to sustainably build a substantial company supporting our core market,” said George Reese, Founder and CEO of Employee Navigator. “We believe there is a need for an agnostic company to bring the benefits ecosystem stakeholders together, and we are confident Employee Navigator can be that trusted partner. We have come to know JMI very well over the last two years and feel they are the ideal long-term partner for our business goals. Ultimately, this was an opportunistic fundraise as we’ve been profitable since 2015 and continue to grow profitably despite the COVID-19 headwinds, and we are excited to deliver more great products and services to our customers and partners.”

“George and the Employee Navigator team have built a resilient business well-positioned for accelerated growth, as demonstrated by their record new business and profitability through COVID,” said David Greenberg, General Partner at JMI Equity. “The Company has established itself as a leader in the benefits administration software space, with impressive employee scale on the platform and some of the most positive customer and partner reference calls we have ever completed. Most importantly, George and the team have the deep insurance industry experience that is crucial to sustained success in this space. We are incredibly excited to partner with Employee Navigator and support their compelling long-term vision.”

About Employee Navigator

Employee Navigator is a rapidly growing benefits, compliance, and HR software provider. The company currently works with more than 2,000 industry-leading brokers nationwide, providing benefits administration and HR products to over 50,000 companies and 10 million employees and dependents.

Employee Navigator has also been named a Top Workplace by the Washington Post in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. For more information, visit www.employeenavigator.com

About JMI Equity

JMI Equity is a growth equity firm focused on investing in leading software companies. Founded in 1992, JMI has invested in over 150 businesses in its target markets, successfully completed over 100 exits, and raised more than $4 billion of committed capital. JMI partners with exceptional management teams to help build their companies into industry leaders. For more information, visit www.jmi.com.

Contacts

For Employee Navigator:
Kyle Reese
kreese@employeenavigator.com
301-583-5185

For JMI Equity:
Chuck Dohrenwend / Will Braun
Abernathy MacGregor
cod@abmac.com / whb@abmac.com
212-371-5999

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Baird Capital Invests in Jumpcode Genomics

Baird Capital

Baird Capital announced today that its venture team has completed an investment in Jumpcode Genomics (“Jumpcode”), a genome technology company focused on improving the understanding of human disease. Joining Baird Capital in the $21 million Series B round of funding was Arboretum Ventures and existing investor LYZZ Capital.

Jumpcode Genomics

Founded in 2016, Jumpcode’s patented technology unlocks the power of next-generation sequencing by improving sensitivity, reducing costs, simplifying workflows and removing bias. Researchers worldwide are using Jumpcode’s CRISPRClean technology in the fields of basic research, infectious disease, oncology and consumer genomics.

“The Jumpcode Genomics team and advisors have a tremendous amount of experience and knowledge in this sector,” said Mike Liang, Partner with Baird Capital. “We believe the underlying technology within Jumpcode has revolutionary applications within the life sciences tools market and within clinical diagnostic applications.”

For the full announcement and additional details on the funding round, a new board member appointment and office and laboratory space expansion, the full press release is available here.

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Volpi Capital beats target with second fund holding final close at €323m

Volpi Capital

London,12 January, 2021: Volpi Capital, the London-based mid-market tech investor, has today announced the final close of its second fund at €323 million (excluding co-investments) surpassing its €300 million target. Despite the challenges of fundraising during the pandemic, the new fund is 75% larger than Volpi’s predecessor fund which closed in March 2018 on €185 million.

This successful fundraise enables Volpi to continue its thematic, “Pick-Your-Partner” approach to investing in Northern European tech-enabled businesses. As with Fund I, Fund II will focus on businesses providing mission-critical services to enterprise customers where technology is displacing traditional business models. Volpi takes a partnership approach to working with management teams to accelerate growth, driving transformation through product expansion, internationalisation and ambitious buy-and-build programmes.

Investors were attracted to Volpi’s tech-enabled focus and resilient portfolio, which grew EBITDA by 27% in 2020. Volpi secured backing from both existing investors, and substantial new commitments from blue-chip European (70%) and US (30%) institutions, including university endowments, fund of funds, insurance companies and family offices.

The growth seen in Volpi’s assets under management reflects the growth of Volpi Capital itself. Today Volpi comprises an internationally diverse team of 17, which will continue to grow as the Fund is invested.

The Fund has already made five investments to date, backing Dutch IT services company Mansystems; Norwegian FSM software provider Asolvi; Dutch fleet management software provider Moving Intelligence; Danish software and solutions business Boyum IT and Profit Software; a Nordic IT services company for the insurance and banking sectors.

Crevan O’Grady, Partner at Volpi Capital said:

“It is fantastic to see the investor support we have received in raising Fund II, especially at such a tumultuous time. We look forward to working with our investors, new and existing, to continue building pan-European tech-enabled assets capable of generating exceptional returns”.

Marco Sodi, Partner at Volpi Capital said:

“The market conditions we have seen in the past year have served to validate the robustness of our thesis and accelerate the long term trends we have been investing behind since inception. Throughout 2020 we have continued to identify attractive opportunities, reflected in our strong deployment, and we look forward to delivering more outstanding deals for our investors in Fund II”.

The Volpi Capital II fundraise was advised by Rede Partners. Loyens and Loeff and MJ Hudson acted as legal advisors.

About Volpi Capital

Volpi Capital is a specialist Northern European lower mid-market private equity firm seeking ambitious businesses that use technology to disrupt traditional B2B value chains. Volpi typically invests €25-75 million of equity in businesses with enterprise values between €50 million and €200 million and seeks to drive transformative growth through international expansion and consolidation. The firm, which was founded in 2016 by Crevan O’Grady and Marco Sodi, today comprises 17 professionals. Volpi closed its first fund (Volpi Capital Fund I) in April 2018 with commitments of €185 million and its second fund (Volpi Capital Fund II) in December 2020 with €323 million of commitments.

For further information visit www.volpicapital.com

Media enquiries:

Volpi Capital – Samantha Lang T. +44 203 747 2625

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Hornetsecurity Agrees to Acquire Software Solutions Provider Altaro to Create International Cloud Security and Compliance Software Platform

Verdane Capital

Transformative acquisition by Hornetsecurity to establish pan-European solution to security and compliance issues in the Microsoft 365 environment

Hanover, Germany –Hornetsecurity Group, a leading European provider of cloud-based email security and data protection headquartered in Germany, today announced that it has agreed to acquire Altaro, a high-growth international provider of reliable backup solutions. The acquisition will transform the company from being a regional leader in cloud email security to an international cloud security and compliance platform.

Altaro provides cloud back-up software for Microsoft Office 365 and virtual machine (VM) software focused on mid-market and SMEs. Headquartered in Malta with offices in the UK, Germany, France, North Macedonia and the US, Altaro serves over 50,000 customers across more than 120 countries.

This transaction will significantly expand Hornetsecurity’s international presence and product range, making the company a pan-European solutions provider to security and compliance issues in the Microsoft 365 environment. As part of the transaction, Altaro’s founders will be appointed into management roles within Hornetsecurity.

 

The transaction is supported by Hornetsecurity’s shareholders Verdane, the Northern European specialist growth equity investor and PSG, a leading growth equity firm partnering with lower middle-market software and technology-enabled service companies.

“We’re thrilled to welcome the Altaro team to help drive the next phase of our growth,” said Daniel Hofmann, CEO of Hornetsecurity. “As we look to provide all organisations with a complete security and compliance solution for their use of cloud technologies, integrating Altaro’s backup solutions into Hornetsecurity’s email cloud security product portfolio will complete the comprehensive security package puzzle.”

David Vella, CEO of Altaro, added: “We have found exactly the right strategic buyer in Hornetsecurity and are delighted to become part of the group. The two companies’ existing business lines complement each other perfectly, and by combining these along with our pooled industry experience and know-how, we are confident in Hornetsecurity’s ability to become the European market leader in cloud security.”

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

 

About Hornetsecurity Group

Hornetsecurity is a leading email cloud security provider in Europe, which protects the IT infrastructure, digital communication and data of companies and organizations of all sizes. Founded in 2007, the security specialist from Hanover, Germany, provides its services worldwide via 9 redundant, secured data centres. The product portfolio covers all important areas of email security, including spam and virus filters, legally compliant archiving and encryption, as well as defense against CEO fraud and ransomware. With around 200 employees, Hornetsecurity is represented globally at 11 locations and operates in more than 30 countries through its international distribution network. The premium services are used by approximately 40,000 customers including Swisscom, Telefónica, KONICA MINOLTA, LVM Versicherung, DEKRA and Claas.

Further information on www.hornetsecurity.com

 

About Altaro

Altaro is a high-growth developer of reliable backup solutions for managed service providers (MSPs), IT resellers and enterprises. The company has over 50,000 customers in 121 countries around the world, 10,000 partners and over 2,000 MSPs. Altaro offers cost-effective and professional features without unnecessary aspects that add costs or excessive complexity. The flagship product is the backup solution for virtualized environments Altaro VM Backup. It is becoming increasingly popular and is the first choice for Hyper-V and VMware backups and replications. Altaro Office 365 Backup is a subscription solution for backing up and restoring Office 365 mailboxes. A backup solution for physical Windows servers is also available. Altaro has offices in the U.S., U.K., Germany, France, northern Macedonia and Malta.

For further information visit www.altaro.com

 

About Verdane

Verdane is a specialist growth equity investment firm that partners with ambitious Northern European tech-enabled businesses to help them reach the next stage of international growth. Verdane pioneered portfolio acquisitions in Northern Europe in 2003, and announced a complementary fund strategy entirely dedicated to direct investments in 2018. Verdane’s eight funds hold €2.1bn in total commitments and have made over 120 investments in category leaders within software, digital consumer, and energy & resource efficiency. Verdane’s team of more than 60, based in Berlin, Copenhagen, Helsinki, London, Oslo and Stockholm, is dedicated to being the preferred growth partner in Northern Europe. www.verdane.com

About PSG

PSG is a growth equity firm that partners with lower middle-market software and technology-enabled services companies to help them navigate transformational growth, capitalize on strategic opportunities and build strong teams. Having backed more than 60 companies and facilitated over 250 add-on acquisitions, PSG brings extensive investment experience, deep expertise in software and technology, and a firm commitment to collaborating with management teams. Founded in 2014, PSG operates out of offices in Boston, Kansas City and London.

 

Press contacts

Jonathan Bui, Communications Manager
Verdane
press@verdane.com
+46 76 27 28 100

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Blackstone Private Credit Fund Breaks Escrow with Net Proceeds of $814 Million

Blackstone

New York, NY, January 12, 2021 – Blackstone today announced that Blackstone Private Credit Fund (“BCRED”), the firm’s non-listed business development company (“BDC”), broke escrow with approximately $814 million in net proceeds for its continuous public offering on January 7, 2021. With leverage, BCRED may have approximately $1.8 billion of investable capital.

Blackstone Credit manages approximately $135 billion[1] of assets overall and invests across the corporate credit market. BCRED is part of Blackstone Credit’s $21 billion[2] direct lending platform, which provides privately originated, senior secured, floating rate loans to U.S. and European middle market companies. Leveraging Blackstone’s institutional-caliber investment approach, BCRED aims to provide income-focused individual investors access to private credit in a continuously offered fund structure. BCRED is offered through Blackstone’s global Private Wealth Solutions business, demonstrating the firm’s continued commitment to delivering solutions for individual investors.

Commenting on the announcement, Joan Solotar, Global Head of Private Wealth Solutions, said: “Just as we reimagined the non-traded REIT with BREIT, we are hoping to do the same with private credit and BDCs. The positive initial response to BCRED illustrates the need for income solutions in today’s low rate environment and the compelling opportunity BCRED can provide.”

Dwight Scott, Global Head of Blackstone Credit, said: “Blackstone has built a $21 billion direct lending business, focused on developing long-term partnerships with companies to support their success. With BCRED, we’re excited to give individual investors the same access to our experienced team, scale and deep resources that we provide our institutional clients.”

Brad Marshall, Co-Head of Performing Credit and CEO of BCRED, said: “With BCRED, we’re focused on investing in established, historically stable enterprises with positive cash flows and staying senior in the capital structure. Our scale and resources differentiate us in the market, help us identify investment opportunities and help support the long-term success of the companies we invest in.”

About Blackstone Credit

Blackstone Credit is one of the world’s largest credit-focused asset managers, with $135 billion in assets under management. We seek to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns for our clients by investing across the entire corporate credit market, from public debt to private loans. Our capital supports a wide range of companies across sectors and geographies, enabling businesses to expand, invest, and navigate changing market environments.

About Blackstone   

Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our $584 billion in assets under management include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, life sciences, growth equity, opportunistic, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow Blackstone on Twitter @Blackstone.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information contained in this communication constitutes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, such as “outlook,” “indicator,” “believes,” “expects,” “potential,” “continues,” “may,” “can,” “will,” “should,” “seeks,” “approximately,” “predicts,” “intends,” “plans,” “estimates,” “anticipates”, “confident,” “conviction,” “identified” or the negative versions of these words or other comparable words thereof. These may include financial projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements about plans, objectives and expectations with respect to future operations, statements regarding future performance, statements regarding economic and market trends and statements regarding identified but not yet closed investments. Such forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and there are or may be important factors that could cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those indicated in such statements. BCRED believes these factors also include but are not limited to those described under the section entitled “Risk Factors” in its prospectus, and any such updated factors included in its periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), which are accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included in this document (or BCRED’s prospectus and other filings). Except as otherwise required by federal securities laws, BCRED undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

Contacts

Blackstone

Kate Holderness

kate.holderness@blackstone.com

+1 917 318 6818

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M-Files Secures $80 Million in Growth Investment

Tesi

M-Files, the intelligent information management company, today announced that it has received a strategic investment of $80 million (€67 million). Bregal Milestone, a European growth capital firm, led the round with current investors Partech, Tesi and Draper Esprit also participating.

M-Files provides an intelligent, repository neutral platform that utilizes metadata and artificial intelligence (AI) to break down information silos and unify systems, data and content across an organization. M-Files seamlessly embeds within popular digital workplace platforms, including Microsoft 365, Salesforce and Google Workspace, enabling users to access and manage documents and information from the applications where they prefer to work.

From small and medium-sized businesses to large global enterprises, M-Files is a trusted partner to thousands of customers in over 100 countries, helping them increase efficiencies and drive productivity.  M-Files has more than 500 employees located across 11 global offices. The company’s software-as-a-service (SaaS) business model continues to propel its strong growth. M-Files has been featured in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms (formerly Enterprise Content Management) since 2012 and named a Visionary for the last five consecutive years.

Cyrus Shey (on the left) and Antti Nivala (on the right)

Antti Nivala, CEO and founder of M-Files:

“Bregal Milestone’s extensive experience investing in the B2B enterprise software sector and their philosophy in partnering with fast-growing companies like M-Files made the firm an attractive investment partner. We’ve identified opportunities to accelerate our growth and further expand M-Files’ market penetration, especially in North America. The valuable investment from Bregal Milestone, bolstered by support from our existing shareholders Partech, Tesi and Draper Esprit, will enable M-Files to deliver further innovations in product development, AI and our cloud platform.”

Cyrus Shey, Managing Partner at Bregal Milestone:

“We are thrilled to partner with the M-Files team to support Antti and his team on their very exciting growth journey. M-Files has a robust and cutting-edge solution that brings tangible value-add to its customers. We look forward to supporting management in accelerating growth and further consolidating M-Files’ leadership position, namely in the US and other key geographies. The transaction is the 9th investment made by Bregal Milestone’s inaugural growth capital fund in just over 2 years, and we couldn’t be more proud to partner with Antti and the world-class M-Files team.”

Additional information:

Antti Nivala, CEO and founder, M-Files Oy
antti.nivala@m-files.com
+358 40 556 0471

Juha Lehtola, Director, venture capital invesments, Tesi Oy
juha.lehtola@m-files.com
+358 400 647 671

 

M-Files Oy

M-Files provides a next-generation intelligent information management platform that improves business performance by helping people find and use information more effectively. Unlike traditional enterprise content management (ECM) systems or content services platforms, M-Files unifies systems, data and content across the organization without disturbing existing systems and processes or requiring data migration. Using artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in its unique Intelligent Metadata Layer, M-Files breaks down silos by delivering an in-context experience for accessing and leveraging information that resides in any system and repository, including network folders, SharePoint, file sharing services, ECM systems, CRM, ERP and other business systems and repositories. Thousands of organizations in more than 100 countries use M-Files for managing their business information and processes, including NBC Universal, OMV, Valmet, SAS Institute and thyssenkrupp. For more information, visit: m-files.fi.

Bregal Milestone

Bregal Milestone is a growth capital firm managing a €495 million pan-European fund dedicated to making investments in high-growth European companies. The firm provides growth capital and strategic assistance to support market-leading companies in the technology and technology-enabled services sectors. Bregal Milestone is part of Bregal Investments, who have invested over €15 billion to date.

Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) is a Finnish state-owned investment company that wants to raise Finland to the front ranks of renewing economic growth by investing in funds and directly in companies. We invest profitably and responsibly, hand-in-hand with co-investors, to create the world’s new success stories. Our investments under management total 1.6 billion euros. Ambition for ownership and success – tesi.fi | @TesiFII

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Audax Private Equity and Linden Capital Partners Invest in StatLab Medical Products

Audax Group

Audax Private Equity (“Audax”) and Linden Capital Partners (“Linden”), two leading middle-market private equity firms, announced today the acquisition of StatLab Medical Products (“StatLab” or the “Company”). Founded in 1976 and headquartered in McKinney, Texas, StatLab is a leading manufacturer and distributor of consumables, reagents, and equipment used by anatomic pathology, molecular diagnostics, and other laboratories.

Joe Bernardo, Operating Partner at Linden, has been appointed Executive Chairman of StatLab and will join the Board of Directors. Mr. Bernardo brings valuable experience to StatLab after spending over 25 years with premier diagnostics organizations, including Thermo Fisher Scientific, Siemens Healthcare, and Abbott Laboratories. “We are delighted to partner with StatLab to build upon its reputation derived from decades of providing high quality products and service. The Company has a unique opportunity to expand its customer base and suite of consumables and equipment offerings over the next several years,” said Mr. Bernardo.

Michael Karsonovich, Operating Advisor at Linden, has been appointed CEO of StatLab and will also join the Board. Mr. Karsonovich has extensive experience across anatomic pathology and diagnostics, having previously held executive positions at Thermo Fisher Scientific in their Fisher HealthCare, Temperature Control and Slides, and Specialty Glass businesses. “I am honored by the opportunity to contribute to this organization and am excited to work with the talented team at StatLab. I also want to thank Dan Eckert for his outstanding leadership of the StatLab team for the last three years,” noted Mr. Karsonovich. “Moreover, I look forward to partnering with Audax and Linden, who share my vision to build upon, invest in, and accelerate the growth of StatLab,” added Mr. Karsonovich.

“StatLab has established itself as a leader in anatomic pathology consumables and a reliable partner to laboratory and OEM customers. Linden’s investment in StatLab builds upon our prior experience in the diagnostics sector, and we look forward to leveraging that experience to support the Company’s next phase of growth,” said Kam Shah, Partner at Linden.

David Wong, Managing Director at Audax, added, “We commend StatLab’s management team on building an extraordinary business, one that has been resilient despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Company is now well positioned to continue to grow both organically and through strategic acquisitions.”

In addition to Joe Bernardo and Michael Karsonovich, Gary Knight, Operating Advisor to Audax and former VP of Strategy & Corporate Development at VWR, Brian Miller of Linden and Keith Palumbo of Audax will join StatLab’s Board of Directors. Dan Eckert will remain on the Board.

Ropes & Gray LLP and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisors to Audax and Linden, and Cain Brothers, a division of KeyBanc Capital Markets, served as exclusive financial advisor. Robert W. Baird & Co. served as financial advisor to StatLab. Golub Capital provided debt financing for the transaction.

Contacts
Audax Private Equity
David Wong
Managing Director

 

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KKR Expands Real Estate Industrial Portfolio in Phoenix with a New Acquisition

KKR

January 12, 2021

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– KKR, a leading global investment firm, today announced the acquisition of a 263,000 square foot industrial distribution property in Goodyear, Arizona. Strategically located in close proximity to the I-10 interstate highway, a major cross-country trucking artery, the property increases KKR’s industrial real estate footprint in the Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan statistical area (MSA) to over two million square feet.

The property is modern fulfillment center completed in 2019 with state of the art physical features including 36’ clear height and was 100% leased at acquisition to high quality tenant on a long-term basis. KKR acquired the asset from the developers, Provident Real Estate Ventures and Merit Partners.

“We continue to like high growth markets across the Sunbelt and are excited to further expand our presence in Phoenix with this high quality asset well suited to today’s logistics needs,” said Roger Morales, KKR Partner and Head of Commercial Real Estate Acquisitions in the Americas.

KKR is making the investment through its core plus real estate strategy. Across its funds, KKR now owns approximately 32 million square feet of industrial property in strategic locations across major metropolitan areas in the U.S.

Since launching a dedicated real estate platform in 2011, KKR has grown real estate assets under management to approximately $14 billion across the U.S., Europe and Asia as of September 30, 2020. The global real estate team consists of over 90 dedicated investment professionals, spanning both the equity and credit businesses.

About KKR

KKR is a leading global investment firm that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, credit and real assets, with strategic partners 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.

Media:
Cara Major or Miles Radcliffe-Trenner
212-750-8300
media@kkr.com

Source: KKR

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Latour completes acquisition of VEGA S.R.L.

Latour logo

2021-01-12 08:30

On November 17, 2020, Investment AB Latour, through its wholly owned subsidiary Latour Industries AB, signed an agreement to acquire VEGA S.R.L, a company based in the Marche region, Italy. All closing conditions have now been fulfilled and the transaction has been completed as of January 11, 2021.

Göteborg, 12 January 2021

INVESTMENT AB LATOUR (PUBL)
Johan Hjertonsson, CEO

For further information, please contact:
Björn Lenander, CEO Latour Industries AB, +46 708 19 47 36
Gustav Samuelsson, Business Development Investment AB Latour, +46 735 52 55 59

Latour Industries consists of a number of operating areas, each with its own business concept and business model. The ambition is to develop independent entities within the business area which can eventually become new business areas within the Latour Group. Latour Industries has an annual turnover of SEK 3 billion.

Investment AB Latour is a mixed investment company consisting primarily of a wholly-owned industrial operations and an investment portfolio of listing holdings in which Latour is the principal owner or one of the principal owners. The investment portfolio consists of nine substantial holdings with a market value of about SEK 69 billion. The wholly-owned industrial operations has an annual turnover of SEK 15 billion.

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Open Farm Receives $65MM+ Minority Growth Investment Led By General Atlantic

General Atlantic

Funding Supports Open Farm’s Mission to Deliver Premium, Ethically Sourced Nutrition to More Pets & Will Help Drive Continued Brand Expansion

Open Farm, a premium pet food brand committed to raising the bar on the way we feed our pets, has raised $65MM+ USD ($80 MM+ CAD) in its latest round of funding, led by leading global growth equity firm General Atlantic. This marks General Atlantic’s first investment in the pet industry, and they join the company’s leadership team and existing minority partner, Encore Consumer Capital, on Open Farm’s long-term growth journey. The funding will be used to accelerate Open Farm’s mission to Do Some Good for animals and the planet, introduce the brand to millions of new pet parents, and support continued innovation to transform the way pets are fed through high-quality nutrition.

“Today’s pet parent is looking for strong nutrition that also aligns with their values,” said Isaac Langleben, Co-Founder and CEO of Open Farm. “We go to great lengths to create amazing foods, using ethically sourced ingredients, and take pride that every ingredient, in every bag of Open Farm, can be traced back to the source. We are so excited to partner with the team at General Atlantic as we continue to push our mission forward and establish Open Farm as the global leader in the premium pet food space.”

Since 2014, Open Farm has worked to make premium quality pet food offerings accessible and customizable to every pet and pet parent’s needs. With annualized growth exceeding 100% over the last five years, Open Farm can now be found in over 5,500 neighborhood pet retailers across North America, as well as online at OpenFarmPet.com. Open Farm started out with three products and is now recognized as a category-leader in product innovation, with a full suite of premium offerings ranging from dry dog food to fresh meals and supplements.

Throughout this growth trajectory, Open Farm has stayed true to its values, partnering with international recycling leader TerraCycle™ to offer a national pet food bag recycling program, and becoming the first pet food brand in North America to offer reusable packaging on the Loop platform. Additionally, Open Farm works with ethical sourcing partners Certified Humane®, Global Animal Partnership, and Ocean Wise Seafood to not only provide better quality ingredients to pets, but to ensure that the brand is sourcing ingredients in a way that respects farm animals and the planet.

“Mission-driven brands are a key focus for General Atlantic, and we are thrilled to partner with the Open Farm team, a group of passionate entrepreneurs who have built an authentic brand on the global and growing interest in better pet food options,” said Andrew Ferrer, Managing Director at General Atlantic. “Open Farm is well-positioned to deliver on the modern food values of its customers with its diverse portfolio of ethically and sustainably sourced premium products.”

“Open Farm is a highly differentiated brand and a leader within the growing pet food sector,” added Ben Sherman, Vice President at General Atlantic. “We are excited to support the team as they look to drive consumer awareness, enhance retailer support, and continue to deliver new product innovation and transparency around the world.”

Open Farm’s nutrient-dense recipes for dogs and cats include Dry Food, Freeze Dried Raw, Gently Cooked Fresh Meals, Rustic Stews and Blends, Treats, and Supplements such as Bone Broth and Kefir. Open Farm is available in neighborhood pet stores across the US and Canada and online at OpenFarmPet.com.

Open Farm was advised by Cascadia Capital LLC and Goodmans LLP. General Atlantic was advised by McCarthy Tétrault LLP.

About Open Farm

Open Farm is a Toronto-based pet food company on a mission to Do Some Good® for pets, farm animals and the planet. Every Open Farm recipe is designed to deliver high-quality nutrition, and is committed to raising the bar on the way we feed our pets with even stricter standards than what we eat ourselves. Open Farm delivers on its nutritional promise across 7 different product categories with an unmatched approach to ingredient transparency.  Since 2014, Open Farm has extended its presence to over 5,500 neighborhood pet stores across North America and at OpenFarmPet.com. Join our mission at OpenFarmPet.com or on Instagram and Facebook.

About General Atlantic

General Atlantic is a leading global growth equity firm providing capital and strategic support for growth companies. Established in 1980, General Atlantic combines a collaborative global approach, sector specific expertise, a long-term investment horizon and a deep understanding of growth drivers to partner with great entrepreneurs and management teams to build market-leading businesses worldwide. General Atlantic has more than 175 investment professionals based in New York, Amsterdam, Beijing, Greenwich, Hong Kong, Jakarta, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Munich, Palo Alto, São Paulo, Shanghai and Singapore. For more information on General Atlantic, please visit the website: www.generalatlantic.com.

Media Contacts

Mary Armstrong & Emily Japlon
General Atlantic media@generalatlantic.com

Carolyn Kocjan
Open Farm openfarmpet@powerdigital.com

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