Category Archives: News

Ard Group and Verdane partner to develop Mustad globally

Ard Group

Verdane Capital IX invests in Norwegian investment company Ard Group’s portfolio, including O. Mustad & Søn AS, a world leading producer of fishing hooks and fishing related accessories.

Ard Group and Verdane aim to jointly develop the portfolio’s strong companies, and through the transaction, Verdane Capital IX becomes the majority owner in Ard Group portfolio companies O. Mustad & Søn AS and Sunkost AS.

For Mustad, a Norwegian company with roots dating back to the 19th century, the investment marks the next phase of development. John Are Lindstad, with a background from Fenix Outdoor Group/Fjällräven, was appointed CEO of Mustad in April.

Lindstad said: “Mustad is a company with an inspiring history and a 140-year tradition. I am very enthusiastic about leading this great team and company to the next level, with expansion built around Mustad’s globally strong brand.”

As a global leader in fishing hooks, Mustad produces over 1.5 billion hooks per year for recreational and commercial use. The company has 460 employees, and revenues of Nkr 312m in 2016.

Børre Nordheim-Larsen, CEO of Ard Group, added: “I am very pleased to have Verdane on board as the new co-owner. The experience, network and track-record of Verdane is exactly the right match for Mustad and Ard Group. As a new owner and partner Verdane will be instrumental in taking our companies to the next level.”

Arne Handeland, Partner at Verdane Capital Advisors said: “Through the efforts of the employees of Mustad, and owner Ard Group, Mustad has positioned itself with a strong brand-name and considerable possibilities to grow internationally. We are very excited to have the opportunity to play a part in unlocking that potential.”

About Ard Group
Ard Group is a privately-owned investment company with roots going back to 1946. In the last ten years, the company has been geared towards becoming a family office/industrial investment company. Ard Group is owned by a Norwegian private individual, Børre Nordheim-Larsen. More information about Ard Group is available at: www.ardgroup.no

About Verdane
Verdane funds provide flexible growth capital to fast growing software, consumer internet, energy or high-technology industry businesses. The funds are distinctive in that they can invest both in single companies, and portfolios of companies. Verdane funds have €900m under management and have invested in over 300 holdings over the past 14 years. Verdane Capital Advisors has 25 employees working out of offices in Oslo, Stockholm, and Helsinki. More information can be found at: www.verdanecapital.com.

Categories: News

Tags:

Swander Pace Capital Sells Kicking Horse Coffee to Lavazza

Swander Pace logo

Swander Pace Capital Sells Kicking Horse Coffee to Lavazza

Bedminster, NJ (May 24, 2017) – Swander Pace Capital, a leading private equity firm specializing in consumer products companies, has sold Kicking Horse Coffee, Ltd., the #1 organic and fair trade coffee roaster in Canada, to Luigi Lavazza S.p.A. in a transaction valuing the company at C$215 million.  The firm partnered with Co-Founder Elana Rosenfeld in 2012 and made the investment through its Branch Brook Holdings partnership with Jefferson Capital Partners and United Natural Foods, Inc.

During the last five years, Kicking Horse Coffee achieved industry-leading growth across North America and benefited from material investments in its business, particularly sales, marketing, and operations infrastructure.  Consumers in North America continue to seek a better coffee experience, and Kicking Horse Coffee has consistently delivered one for over twenty years, priding itself on offering an exceptional cup of coffee that can be brewed in one’s own home.

“Swander Pace and the rest of the Branch Brook team were the perfect partners for me when I sought help and wanted to grow my business beyond Western Canada.  I was not willing to sacrifice our values, culture, and uncompromising product quality standards,” said Elana Rosenfeld, Co-Founder and CEO of Kicking Horse Coffee. “The expertise they brought to the table was real, introduced in a respectful way, and truly helped us grow.  They also repeatedly demonstrated their integrity and approach to partnership.”

“It has been an absolute privilege to work with Elana, the team, and this incredible brand as we expanded its footprint in stores across North America.  The brand’s success and growth momentum in North America speaks for itself,” added Rob DesMarais, managing director at Swander Pace Capital. “We are now excited to watch the company thrive as it enters this new chapter with Lavazza.”

Linda Boardman, President of Branch Brook Holdings, added further, “We are genuinely pleased by this outcome with Kicking Horse Coffee as it has been a real pleasure to work with such a passionate and committed group of people.  This milestone demonstrates the breadth of resources that our team can bring to the table to capitalize on a company’s strong foundation, accelerate its growth, and create a truly sustainable market position, all while preserving the brand’s quality commitment.”

About Swander Pace Capital 

Swander Pace Capital (SPC) is a private equity firm that invests in companies that are integral to
consumers’ lives. SPC’s consumer industry expertise informs the firm’s strategic approach and
adds value through access to its proven SPC Playbook, senior team, and extensive network. The firm partners with management teams to help build companies to their full potential. SPC invests in businesses across three domains of consumer lifestyles: Food & Beverage, Body & Wellness, and Home & Family. With offices in San Francisco, New Jersey, and Toronto, SPC has invested in more than 45 companies and raised cumulative equity commitments of approximately $1.8 billion since 1996. For more information, visit www.spcap.com.

About Branch Brook

Branch Brook Holdings, LLC represents a strategic partnership formed in early 2012 between Swander Pace Capital, Jefferson Capital Partners, and United Natural Foods, Inc. to make investments in organic, natural, and specialty consumer product companies.  Branch Brook works closely with the owners, founders, and management teams of its companies to provide the capital, resources, distribution support, and strategic guidance they need for its businesses to grow.  Kicking Horse Coffee was the first investment made by Branch Brook.  Subsequently, Branch Brook has made investments in Oregon Ice Cream, which owns the two leading organic ice cream brands in the US (Alden’s and Julie’s), and Reliance, which owns PlantFusion, a leading plant-based protein powder and beverage brand in the natural channel.  Branch Brook represents an extension of Swander Pace Capital and has full access to all of these resources.  For more information, please visit www.branchbrookllc.com.

About Kicking Horse Coffee

Kicking Horse Coffee, Ltd. is based in Invermere, British Columbia (Canada) and celebrated its 20 year anniversary as a company in 2016.  Kicking Horse Coffee remains a pioneer of whole bean and fair trade coffee in Canada and is best known for its distinctive coffee blends and unique brand personality.  The Company was recently named the #10 Best Place to Work in Canada.  For more information, visit www.KickingHorseCoffee.com.

 

 

Media Contact:

Jeff Segvich

LANE, a Finn Partners Company (on behalf of Swander Pace Capital)

Phone: 503.546.7870

jeff.segvich@finnpartners.com

 

Categories: News

Tags:

InVivo Group to acquire Baarsma Wine Group

AAC Logo

Paris, Huizen – 23 May 2017. French agricultural cooperative group InVivo Group (www.invivo-group.com) intends to buy a 100% share in the Dutch-based Baarsma Wine Group (www.baarsma.com). The company has reached an agreement to this effect with Baarsma Wine Group’s current shareholders, private equity firm AAC Capital Partners, and the management. Over the next few years, InVivo Group wishes to grow its international wine activities both autonomously and through acquisitions. The intended acquisition will be submitted for approval by the Competition authority. Neither company is disclosing financial details of the transaction.

InVivo Group, with an annual turnover of €6.4 billion and 9,200 employees, has a presence in 31 countries across the globe. Its activities are concentrated within four divisions: Agriculture, Animal Nutrition and Health, Retail and Wine. The wine division, InVivo Wine, already has stakes in various French wine companies and commercial activities in Asia and North America. Representing an annual turnover of approximately €348 million, the focus is on the production and bottling of wines and the market representation of over 23 cooperatives (3500 wine makers). Vinadeis (www.vinadeis.fr), as part to its wine division, has bottling and packaging facilities for wines that, under various brand names, mainly reach the French domestic market. Cordier is developing an outstanding range from Bordeaux with a modern approach and Mestrezat is specialised in Grands Crus wines.

The Dutch-based Baarsma Wine Group is a European leader in wine imports and distribution. The group has an annual revenue of approximately €210 million, 250 fulltime employees and is active in the Netherlands, Belgium, the UK, Switzerland and South Africa. The strength of the company lies in marketing wines nationally and internationally to retail, the hospitality and foodservice sector, specialist stores and in some countries directly to consumers. The product portfolio includes wines of internationally renowned and successful wineries, own brands and private label wines for supermarkets and foodservice companies. In addition to sourcing, distribution, sales and marketing, Baarsma Wine Group also runs its own bottling facility in Zaandam, the Netherlands, and produces and bottles some of its wines in Switzerland and South Africa.

Commenting on the intended acquisition, Mr Bertrand Girard, Managing Director of InVivo Wine, said: ‘InVivo Wine’s strategy is to accelerate its development internationally so as to build access to markets and create added value for the wine industry from grapes to consumers. Baarsma will be a key distribution platform for InVivo Wine in Europe and will perfectly complement existing footholds and those currently in development within the group, especially in Asia and North America. With Baarsma, 80% of InVivo Wine’s current operations will be international, aiming to achieve a turnover of 500 million euros by 2020 on the international scene.’

Mr Cees de Rade, Managing Director of Baarsma Wine Group, looks forward to working with the new shareholder: ‘This acquisition is good news for our people in the first place. We think that Baarsma Wine Group stands to benefit from bringing on board a strategic shareholder who shares our international ambitions. InVivo Wine and Baarsma Wine Group complement each other well in the wine supply chain. Our joint growth plans are very ambitious. However, with our existing suppliers and customers it will mostly be business as usual.’

InVivo Wine and Baarsma Wine Group , subsidiaries included, will continue to operate autonomously and under their own names. There will not be an organisational merger. In the years to come, the expansion outside of France will be driven mainly from the Netherlands, with a leading role for the management of Baarsma Wine Group. Mr Cees de Rade (CEO) and Mr Ed van der Sluijs (CFO), will also become members of InVivo Wine’s Executive Committee, chaired by Bertrand Girard.

Both companies expect to complete the acquisition by early summer.

[End]

Note to the editors:

For further information, please contact:

Baarsma Wine Group                                                        Creative Venue PR

Mr. Cees de Rade – CEO                                                     Mr Frank Witte, spokesperson

holding@baarsma.com                                                       f,witte@creativevenue,nl

Tel. +31 (0) 35 626 1270                                                    Tel. +31 20 4525225

www.baarsmawinegroup.com

 

About Baarsma Wine Group

Baarsma Wine Group is a leading distributor of quality wines, active in the Netherlands, Belgium, the UK, Switzerland and South Africa. Established some 30 years ago in the Netherlands, Baarsma Wine Group has evolved into one of the main players in the European wine market, with a turnover approaching 210 million Euros and over 250 full time employees.

Baarsma Wine Group’s strength lies in marketing wines internationally to retail, out-of-home, the hospitality and foodservice sector, specialty stores and in some countries directly to consumers. The product portfolio includes wines of internationally renowned and successful wineries, Baarsma’s own brands and private label wines for supermarkets and foodservice companies. Further reading: www.baarsma.com

About InVivo Wine

InVivo Wine was launched in June 2015, as the fourth hub of InVivo, the leading French agricultural cooperative group. It consists of a group of partners, investors and contributors, the first of which were the 1st French winery cooperative, Vinadeis (€308 million turnover), the Bordeaux firms of Cordier and Mestrezat Grands Crus (€40 million turnover) and 23 members of cooperatives (3500 wine-makers) covering a wine-producing area of 25,000 hectares. The area includes the Bordeaux District, South-western France, Languedoc and Roussillon, the Rhône Valley and Beaujolais, representing the finest production of more than 1.3 million hectolitres of wine. The division’s main objective consists of building a unique global world-wide wine distributor with wine from all most renown origins in top wine consuming countries.

About InVivo

The InVivo group comprises 220 cooperatives bringing together over 300,000 farmers. The Group employs 9,200 people in 31 countries and works in four main activities: Agriculture (seeds, agricultural supplies, international grain trading), Animal Nutrition and Health, Retail, and Wine. It reported revenue of €6.4 billion in FY 2015-2016.

Categories: News

Tags:

Summa Equity builds platform for big-data enabled businesses

No Comments

Summa Equity establishes Summa Digital – a platform for big data enabled businesses with ground breaking technologies within their respective field. The platform holds three businesses that Summa Equity has added to its portfolio. 

Summa Equity has invested in Swedish IVBAR Institute AB, Norwegian Documaster AS and UK-based Qlearsite Ltd. All three companies are early actors with leading solutions within different areas of big data solutions.

Christian Melby, Partner at Summa Equity said: “The field of data analytics is growing exponentially. Niche markets are developing solutions tailored to the specific needs of businesses and organisations. IVBAR, Documaster and Qlearsite are all pioneers within their respective fields and have succeeded in developing technically sophisticated solutions with strong value propositions for users. We have closely followed the companies’ rapid market traction, the positive feedback received from customers and how the products have proven to be very solid.”

Summa Equity is focused on helping Summa Digital companies in their next phase of development, with funding and support to scale up the businesses for broader roll-out and growth acceleration.

Tommi Unkuri, Partner at Summa Equity, said: “The joint big data platform creates good conditions for synergies in for example go-to-market and development processes. These will be important growth enablers and accelerators.”

IVBAR is a Swedish digital health company that has developed a big data analytics platform, ERA Vision, that enables improved management of healthcare through a focus on patient value. The platform improves transparency and provides unique levels of insight into both health outcomes and resource allocation, and is useful for both payors and providers of healthcare. IVBAR’s solutions have been developed in collaboration with both public and private partners, and the company has succeeded in consolidating vast amounts of highly fragmented healthcare data, enabling a level of insight previously unseen in the system. ERA Vision is used for advanced benchmarking, performance monitoring and calculation of reimbursement.

Tommi Unkuri, continued: “IVBAR addresses fundamentally important topics in the healthcare sector and we believe that IVBAR will have a strong positive contribution to its customers and to patients. IVBAR’s solutions are highly scalable across countries, and the underlying challenges are similar in all healthcare systems. IVBAR has a unique position to provide solutions, based on close collaborations with public health providers in Sweden, its in-depth knowledge of the healthcare system, and a unique digital platform.”

Documaster is a Norwegian digital record management company with core competence on digitization, information management and cloud-based archiving of valuable data. The company has developed a unique technology that addresses an increasing need for efficient and compliant archiving, driven by the rapid growth in digital documentation as well as an increased regulatory focus on record management. The solutions enable organisations to capture, process and preserve data in one single application, where it can easily and instantly be accessed through user-friendly retrieval and search functionality, whilst catering to relevant compliance requirements. The company offers a system agnostic archiving core that is compliant with EU and local regulations.

Christian Melby, said: “Digital documentation is growing at an exponential rate and is rapidly phasing out physical documentation, leaving companies with out-dated, underperforming systems for record management. This is a growing headache for companies and institutions worldwide, and put them at risk of failure to meet regulatory standards. With Documaster’s solutions, organisations are able to regain control of their data. Documaster’s impressive technologies help customers to decommission legacy systems, digitalize paper documents, and gather all records into one application that is user friendly and quick to implement.”

Qlearsite is an early actor in the rapidly growing field of people analytics for human resource management, based in the United Kingdom. The company has developed a technology that is specifically designed to analyse and make predictions about the behaviour of people in a workforce, using both structured and unstructured data. The product suite ranges across data connection and reporting, predictive analysis, and survey analytics, to create a complete toolbox for impactful analysis. The company defines their approach as Organisational Science, using intelligent analytics technologies with data generated by employees to enable corporations to understand the culture within their organisation and get important insights about how to get the best out of their talent base.

Christian Melby continued: “Hiring the right people and making them thrive is a key value driver and crucial for the performance of any business. Companies worldwide are becoming increasingly aware of this strong connection between commercial success and proper management of employees, and thereby the value potential in being able to perform proper analysis on HR data. Qlearsite is at the forefront of this movement with their Organisational Science approach, helping companies to get a deep understanding of what influences their organisation, its people and how to improve performance. Their state of the art solution allows users to perform complete analysis that answers the questions of what, who and why and to make the right priorities in creating stronger organisations, thereby gaining competitive advantages and avoiding unnecessary costs.”

Ends

For more information, please contact:

Christian Melby, Partner, Summa Equity, +47 (0)958 13 277, christian.melby@summaequity.com

Tommi Unkuri, Partner, Summa Equity, +46 (0)70 508 1196, tommi.unkuri@summaequity.com

Jonas Wohlin, IVBAR, +46 (0)708 55 37 00, jonas.wohlin@ivbar.com

Pål Reinert Bredvei, CEO, Documaster, +47 (0)91 10 28 68, prb@documaster.no

Peter Clark, Founder, Qlearsite, +44 (0)77 8866 5434, peter.clark@qlearsite.com

Alex Borekull, Founder, Qlearsite, +44 (0)78 8779 1645, alex.borekull@qlearsite.com 

About Summa Equity

Summa Equity was formed in 2016 by partners with a shared vision of building a leading specialised private equity firm in the Nordic lower mid-market, positioned to capture the investment opportunity provided by the thematic megatrends expected to drive growth over the long term. The Firm focuses on sectors related to four megatrend driven themes: resource scarcity, energy efficiency, changing demographics and tech-enabled businesses. Summa Equity closed its first fund in February 2017 with commitments of SEK 4.5 billion.

Categories: News

Tags:

Ratos AB: Ratos divests Nebula to Telia Company

Ratos

Ratos has signed an agreement to divest all of its shares in its subsidiary Nebula – Finland’s leading provider of cloud services to small and medium-sized companies – to Telia Company for EUR 165m (enterprise value). The divestment generates a net exit gain of approximately SEK 500m, an average annual return (IRR) of approximately 37% and a money multiple of 3.3x.

Nebula is a market leading provider of cloud services, managed services, and network services to small and medium-sized enterprises in the Finnish market. The company has approximately 44,000 customers, 90% subscription-based recurring revenue, and industry-leading profitability.

During Ratos’s four years as an active owner of Nebula the company has implemented a number of value-generating strategic initiatives. Two synergistic add-on acquisitions have reinforced its market-leading position among Finnish SMEs. Investments have been made in the company’s product development and its sales & marketing capabilities. The customer base has grown by more than 30% during Ratos’s ownership and the number of employees from 110 to 145. The annual growth rate has been approximately 12%*) since the acquisition in 2013, with sales amounting to EUR 35.2m and an EBITA of EUR 10.6m per rolling 12 months as of 31 March 2017.

“Together with Nebula’s management and our co-investors Rite Ventures, we have focused on continued growth and profitability. Through strategic measures and added resources, we have strengthened the company’s market position. Improved customer offerings have secured strong customer relationships and high customer satisfaction. Nebula is a well-run company positioned for further growth. Following our discussions with Telia Company, which is a logical buyer, we have arrived at a purchase price that takes Nebula’s position and prospects into account. On this basis, we have agreed to sell and believe the time is right to hand over to a new owner. We are convinced that Nebula and Telia Company complement each other well and can benefit from each other’s respective strengths,” says Johan Rydmark, Investment Director at Ratos.

The selling price for 100% of the shares (equity value) amounts to EUR 110m and the enterprise value to EUR 165m. Ratos’s share of the equity value is approximately EUR 78m and the net exit gain totals approximately SEK 500m, calculated on the book value of Ratos’s holding in Nebula at 31 March 2017. Average annual return (IRR) amounts to approximately 37%. Ratos’s holding in Nebula is 73%. The transaction is expected to be completed during the third quarter and is subject to customary merger control filings.

*) The annual growth rate includes the acquisition of Sigmatic.

Categories: News

Tags:

Ardian confirms its ambitions for US Infrastructure Market through acuisition of stake in LBC

No Comments
London, May 22 2017 –
Ardian, the independent private investment company, today announces that it has signed an agreement to acquire a stake in LBC Tank Terminals (“LBC”) from State Super and Sunsuper. LBC, headquartered in Belgium, is a top-tier global independent operator of bulk liquid storage facilities, predominantly for chemical & base oil products.
Following the transaction, Ardian will hold a 35% stake in LBC. Current shareholders APG and PGGM will
remain invested in the company with a 32.5% stake each.
LBC benefits from its strategically located asset base with operating sites well positioned within major
global trading hubs. Despite its origins as a European company, LBC has a global presence with its largest
operations located in the US Gulf Coast region, namely at Houston and Baton Rouge. The Company also
operates critical sites in the key trading region of Rotterdam and Antwerp in Europe, as well as Shanghai
in Asia. LBC works with the world’s leading petrochemical producers and distributors, providing them with
an independent solution for their liquid tank storage requirements. In many cases, LBC’s business is
physically integrated into the customer production chain and therefore represents a critical infrastructure
for those clients.
Walter Wattenbergh, Group CEO of LBC Tank Terminals, commented: “We are delighted to welcome
Ardian as a new shareholder. LBC is at a significanttransition point in its business strategy, in particular as
the business shifts its focus toward expansion of its facilities in USA and Europe. This trend has been
identified by Ardian and we value the experience and support they can provide to LBC during this period of strategic change.”
Mathias Burghardt, Member of the Executive Committee, Head of Ardian Infrastructure, added: ”LBC is a unique company with fantastic value creation potential. We are very excited to support the managementvision alongside our partners APG and PGGM. Our LBC investment illustrates the existing potential forlong term investors like Ardian in the US infrastructure market.“
Andrew Liau, Managing Director of Ardian Infrastructure, further added: “We have been impressed by the
quality of LBC’s management team and share the vision that exists for the company. We look forward to
supporting the company in delivering upon its growth ambitions whilst maintaining safe and secure
operations for all of LBC’s employees, customers, and other stakeholders.“
LBC represents the 3rdUS dollar denominated investment undertaken by Ardian Infrastructure team in
recent months. Completion of the transaction is subject to a number of conditions including relevant
regulatory approvals.
ABOUT LBC
LBC Tank Terminals is a top-tier global independent operator of bulk liquid storage facilities for
petrochemicals, petroleum products and base oil products. LBC owns and operates a global network of
terminals at key locations in the United States, Europe and China, while offering loading / unloading
services for all modes of transportation.
www.lbctt.com

Categories: News

Tags:

DIF completes the acquisition of Affinity Water

DIF

London, 22 May 2017 – DIF Infrastructure IV is pleased to announce that its consortium, following the announcement made on 2 May 2017, completed the 100% acquisition of the Affinity Water Group on 19 May 2017.

DIF’s share in the consortium is 26.9%, which in addition comprises of Allianz Capital Partners on behalf of Allianz Group (36.6%) and HICL Infrastructure Company Limited (the listed infrastructure investment company advised by InfraRed Capital Partners Limited) (36.6%).

Affinity Water is the United Kingdom’s largest water only supply company by revenue and population served. It is licenced under the Water Industry Act 1991 and regulated by Ofwat, ensuring long term stable income streams. Affinity Water owns and manages the water assets and network in an area of approximately 4,515 km² in the southeast of England, split over three regions, comprising eight separate water resource zones. The company is the sole supplier of drinking water in these areas. Affinity Water supplies, on average, 900 million litres of water a day to over 3.6 million people, serving 1.5 million homes and businesses, together with operating 98 water treatment works.

DIF Profile

DIF is an independent and specialist fund management company, managing funds of approximately €3.7 billion. DIF invests in infrastructure assets that generate long term stable cash flows, including PPP / PFI / P3, regulated infrastructure assets and renewable energy projects in Europe, North America and Australia. DIF has offices in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, Paris, Luxembourg, Madrid, Toronto and Sydney.

For more information, please contact:

Paul Nash, Partner
Email: p.nash@dif.eu

Allard Ruijs, Partner
Email: a.ruijs@dif.eu

Categories: News

Tags:

Netel acquires 100% of the shares in Nett-Tjenester AS

ik-investment-partners

Netel have made an agreement with the shareholders of Nett-Tjenester AS in Norway for acquiring all shares in the company.

Nett-Tjenester is a company delivering engineering services to the electro and power market focusing on reginal and distribution networks up to 72,5Kv.

Nett-Tjenester has it’s headquarter in Fredrikstad, south-east of Oslo with 70 employees and a large network of subcontractors. The revenue was MNOK 131 in 2016 with a profitability supporting Netels goals.

Nett-Tjenester has the competence and the resources to handle large and complex projects and the company is recognised for its quality, competence and performance.

For more information, see www.nett-tjenester.net

CEO in Netel Group, Erik Salling, states: “For Netel the acquisition of Nett-Tjenester implies that we are establishing Netel in the electro segment in Norway and strengthen our existing position in this market in the Nordic region. Netel has already a leading position within the telecom market in the Nordic region. We are very impressed of the results, competence and motivation within Nett-Tjenester and we are very pleased to welcome all new colleagues into the Netel family”

About Netel
Netel builds and maintains infrastructure for telecommunication and electro. We are offering complete solutions including Project management, logistics, planning, permits, construction, installation, service and maintenance. Netel has 450 employees in Sweden, Norway and Finland and a total turnover of BSEK 1,9 in 2016. IK Investment Partners is majority shareholder in Netel.

For more information:
Erik Salling, CEO Netel Group AB, tel +4673375000, erik.salling@netel.se
Erling Nilsen, CEO Netel AS, tel +4797978510, erling.nilsen@netel.no

Categories: News

Tags:

Latour acquires VIMEC S.R.L., a leading Italian manufacturer of platform lifts and stairlifts

Investment AB Latour has, through its business area Latour Industries, signed an agreement to acquire VIMEC S.R.L., a leading Italian manufacturer of platform lifts and stair lifts. Sellers are IGI Private Equity and Finint who together bought 100 per cent of the company in 2015. The acquisition of VIMEC is a natural next step for Latour Industries after the acquisition of Aritco during the second quarter 2016.

VIMEC’s headquarters and manufacturing are based in Luzzara, Italy. The products are sold through partners and distributors primarily in southern Europe. The group has 166 employees and the net sales in 2016 were EUR 44 m, with good operating margin.

“I am very pleased to welcome Latour as our new owners. They are a long-term industrial owner that can support VIMEC’s growth plan in both new products and new geographies. In addition, it is very beneficial for the company to be in the same group as Aritco. We see great joint opportunities on the global market for platform lifts and stair lifts”, says Guiseppe Lupo, CEO of VIMEC S.R.L.

“VIMEC is a high-performing company with a strong product portfolio of solutions that improve accessibility both in private homes and in public environments. VIMEC strongly complement our existing holding Aritco by adding significantly strengthened presence in key markets in Europe. In addition, VIMEC adds both new technologies and products to the product portfolio. We see a long-term growing need for product solutions for better accessibility. Our long-term goal is to build a new business unit within the Accessibility segment. This objective will most likely require more acquisitions in this area”, says Bjorn Lenander, CEO of Latour Industries.

“We are extremely pleased with this transaction which sees the transfer of a leading Italian company to an international industrial owner which will continue the path of development and growth, alongside the management of Vimec led by Giuseppe Lupo, whom we thank for the excellent work done together,” says Angelo Mastrandrea, Partner of IGI and the manager in charge of the operation. Matteo Cirla, Managing Director of IGI, further adds, “The sale of Vimec shows the robustness of IGI’s investment strategy which focuses on industrial firms representing excellence in Italian manufacturing.”

Impact on the Latour Group
The acquisition will from the very beginning have a positive impact on the Latour Group’s earnings per share. The acquisition will increase the net debt in the Latour Group with about EUR 45 m.

Göteborg, May 18, 2017

Investment AB Latour (publ)
Jan Svensson, CEO

For further information please contact:
Björn Lenander, CEO Latour Industries AB, +46 70 819 47 36
Mikael Johnsson, Director of Business Development, Investment AB Latour, +46 733 233 606

Investment AB Latour is a mixed investment company consisting primarily of wholly-owned industrial operations and an investment portfolio of listed 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 47 billion. The wholly-owned industrial operations generated a turnover of approximately SEK 8 billion in 2016.

Categories: News

Tags:

Almi Invest exits from Dapresy and sells its share to Verdane Capital


Almi Invest exits from Dapresy and sells its share to Verdane Capital
Press Release • May 17, 2017 16:00 CEST
SaaS company Dapresy has developed its own analytical tool for market research where the results are presented in the form of infographic.

Almi Invest will exit from Dapresy and sells its share to the Nordic Private Equity Fund Verdane Capital IX. Norrköpingsbolaget Dapresy is a global supplier of a software platform for information visualization of market research data. The company has customers around the world and a significant proportion of the world’s larger companies use Dapresy. In connection with Almi Invest’s divestment, Verdane enters into the new main owner and investor in Dapresy.

Dapresy was founded in 2003 and is a spin-off company from Hermelin Research. In 2010, Dapresy Pro launched on a global market with customers in more than 25 countries. Customers are found in all segments with a focus on larger information-intensive companies that need to communicate market research data to larger organizations. Dapresy has transformed a mature market by allowing modern-time collaborators at all levels of a company to review market research data, tailored individually to the needs of the individual employee, with the aim of supporting more and better business decisions.

-Almi Invest entered the first external investor in 2011. Dapresy has grown steadily and had an annual revenue increase of about 30%. The success of the company is that the team has combined technical excellence with a strong commercial drive on the market side, which made them succeed in gaining global players as loyal customers. With an exit of 5 times invested capital, it enables multiple investments in promising tech startups and contributes to long-term investment activities, says Björn Persson Fund Manager Almi Invest

In 2016, Dapresy had sales of more than 50 million and now has 60 employees. In addition to the head office in Norrköping, Dapresy is represented with local offices in the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Germany and Bosnia. Through partner, the company is represented in Australia and New Zealand.

-Almi Invest and Almi Corporate Partners have been crucial to taking Dapresy where we are today. With Almi Invest as investor and Björn Persson as board member of Dapresy, the company has been able to accelerate growth, expand internationally and create a basic structure for profitable sustained growth. With Verdane as a new strong investor, we are aiming for continued strong growth in Sweden and in our international core markets, “said Torbjörn Andersson, CEO of Dapresy

Contact:

Torbjörn Andersson, CEO, Dapresy, tel: +46 (0) 709 29 94 13, torbjorn.andersson@dapresy.com

Björn Persson, Fund Manager, Almi Invest, tel: + 46 070-2074125, bjorn.persson@almiinvest.se

Maria Kessling, Head of Communications, Almi Invest, tel +46 76-880 88 10 maria.kessling@almiinvest.se

About Almi Invest

Almi Invest is Sweden’s most active investor in startups. We make investments throughout the country through 8 regional venture capital companies and a national venture capital company in GreenTech. Almi Invest manages approximately SEK 3 billion and has since invested approximately 600 startups. Our best holdings have been acquired by Google, Microsoft, Qlik and Apple, for example, or listed on different stock exchanges. Almi Invest is a venture capital company within the Almi Group.

About Dapresy

Dapresy provides a highly visual data reporting software for market research and customer experience management. Market research agency and enterprise professionals in more than 25 countries are using Dapresy Pro to deploy visually engaging dashboards to clearly communicate complex data from markets, users and customers. The company’s unique dynamic dashboards are individually tailored, deploying the right data to the right people at the right time. For marketers looking to move beyond PowerPoint and Excel, Dapresy is the faster and far more effective way to easily present market research and customer experience information from multiple sources in a way that improves decision making. Founded in 2003, Dapresy has a headquarters in Sweden with a North American headquarters in Portsmouth, NH. The firm has several other client services offices around the globe. www.dapresy.com

About Verdane

Verdane funds help ambitious companies in software, e-commerce, energy and high technology industry with flexible capital for growth. The funds can invest either in individual companies or in several at the same time, so-called portfolio transactions. The latest fund, Verdane Capital IX, has 3 billion kronor to invest in fast-growing companies. Verdane Capital Advisors has 25 employees in offices in Stockholm, Oslo and Helsinki. For more information: www.verdanecapital.com.

Categories: News

Tags: