Fresks acquires XL-BYGG Vetlanda

Litorina

Fresks continues to expand through the acquisition of XL-Bygg Vetlanda, a builder’s merchant located in Vetlanda in Jönköping county. The current owners, Johan and Catrine Aronsson, will reinvest part of the proceeds from the transaction and become shareholders in Fresks Group.

XL-BYGG Vetlanda (Vetlanda Trävaru AB) was foundedin 1972, at the time operating a plaining mill, and today the business is a focused full-service builder’s merchant with a turnover of approximately SEK 70million.

After the acquisition Fresks Group will have a total of 33 stores with pro forma revenues of approximately SEK 2.2 billion and 530 employees.

The transaction will complete on 15 January 2019.

For further information, please contact:
Leif Lindholm, +46 70 698 27 00, CEO Fresks Group

Fresks, founded in 1862 is a leading Swedish builder’s merchant group. The company has 33 stores under various local brands whereof the majority is branded XL-BYGG. Fresks sells high quality building material with high degree of service primarily to small and mid-sized professional customers. For more information, please visit www.fresks.se

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Gaw Capital Partners and Consortium Partners Win Bid to Acquire 12 Shopping Centers in Hong Kong

Gaw Capital

December 12, 2018, Hong Kong – Gaw Capital Partners today announced that the firm, through a fund under its management, and consortium partners, including Goldman Sachs, have won a bid to acquire a retail portfolio comprising 12 shopping centers in Hong Kong from Link Asset Management Limited at HK$ 12.01 billion and an average price of around HK$7,839 per sq. ft. excluding parking.

The portfolio is comprised of a number of strategically-located properties across Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories that sit in the heart of densely-populated communities. The GFA of the portfolio totals 1.1 million sq. ft. of prime retail space and comes with over 4,700 parking spaces that are connected to highly-convenient transport links. Their excellent accessibility and holistic shopping environments have made them attractive destinations for retailers and hubs of community life for residents.

The shopping centers included in the portfolio are: Retail and Car Park within Ap Lei Chau Estate, Chun Shek Shopping Centre, Fortune Shopping Centre, King Lam Shopping Centre, Lei Tung Commercial Centre, Ming Tak Shopping Centre, Shan King Commercial Centre, Siu Hei Commercial Centre, Retail and Car Park within Tai Ping Estate, Wah Ming Shopping Centre, Wah Sum Shopping Centre, Wang Tau Hom (Wang Fai Centre).

Goodwin Gaw, Chairman and Managing Principal of Gaw Capital Partners, said, “We and our partners are confident about Hong Kong’s future, and believe these malls will continue to serve important functions in the community. Followed by the bid we won together with our consortium partners to acquire 17 shopping malls in 2017, we will further leverage our experience to evolve these malls into refreshed and renewed centers of local life and collaborate with the local NGOs and existing tenants to build a better neighborhood for themselves.”

Kenneth Gaw, President and Managing Principal of Gaw Capital Partners, commented, “We worked closely with the community over the past 12 months and implemented a series of initiatives to better make use of these malls for the community. We look forward to applying our expertise in repositioning commercial property to add significant strategic value to this additional portfolio.”

Gaw Capital has over 13 years of experience investing in and/or turning around commercial properties in Greater China, including Hong Kong. The firm successfully transformed and repositioned properties such as 133 Wai Yip Street in Hong Kong, a former 12-storey industrial building turned creative office space; Sky Bridge HQ, a mixed-use project located in the heart of Linkong Economic Park in Shanghai; Pacific Century Place in Beijing, a 170,000 sqm (1.8 million sq. ft.) renovated mixed-use commercial property with two office towers and two serviced apartment blocks on a retail podium; Cross Tower in Shanghai, a 22-storey office with a two-storey retail podium; Ciro’s Plaza in Shanghai, a mixed-use property with a 39-storey office building and a 28,000 sqm (302,000 sq. ft.) retail mall; Plaza 353 in Shanghai, a 40,000 sqm (430,000 sq. ft.) renovated mall with historical heritage status; Popark Plaza in Guangzhou, a 92,400 sqm (994,000 sq. ft.) retail mall connected to the Guangzhou East Railway Station, with high-speed trains to Shenzhen and Hong Kong, and access to two major subway lines; and Metropolitan Plaza in Guangzhou, a 88,800 sqm (956,000 sq. ft.) mall located above two subway lines.

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Fresks acquires XL-BYGG Mellerud

Litorina

Fresks continues to expand through the acquisition of XL-Bygg Mellerud, a building material store located in Mellerud, Västra Götaland. The previous owner, Benny Mattsson, will reinvest a significant part of the proceeds from the transaction in Fresks Group.

XL-BYGG Mellerud was founded in 2008 and has been run by Benny Mattsson and his son Thomas Mattsson since 2012. The business consists of the building store in Mellerud, which is located in Dalsland county in Västra Götaland. The store is a part of the XL-BYGG chain. Today, the company has 8 employees and a turnover of approximately SEK 30 million.

After the acquisition Fresks Group will have a total of 32 stores with pro forma revenues of approximately SEK 2 billion and more than 500 employees.

For further information, please contact:

Leif Lindholm, +46 70 698 27 00, CEO Fresks Group

Fresks, founded in 1862 is a leading Swedish building material retail chain in Sweden focused on the professional segment. The company has 32 stores under various local brands whereof the majority is branded XL-BYGG. Fresks sells high quality building material with high degree of service primarily to small and mid-sized professional customers. For more information, please visit www.fresks.se

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Kinnevik invests in Kolonial.no – the leading online grocery store in Norway

Kinnevik

Kinnevik AB (publ) (“Kinnevik”) today announced that it has invested NOK 300m in Kolonial.no AS for a 15% stake in the Norwegian online grocery retailer.

Kinnevik invested NOK 200m in primary capital and a further NOK 100m in secondary shares. Kolonial.no was founded in 2013 and offers grocery delivery to approximately 40% of Norwegian households, a share that they expect to expand over time. The company grew revenues by 88% to approximately NOK 800m in 2017.

Andreas Bernström, Kinnevik Investment Director, commented:

“We are excited to lead the funding round in Kolonial.no, a company that fits squarely into our investment thesis of using technology to offer consumers more and better choice. We have been impressed by the founding team and what they have achieved in a relatively short period of time. Kinnevik is well placed to support the team in scaling the business and we look forward to working with Kolonial.no to reach their goals.”

Karl Munthe-Kaas, CEO Kolonial.no commented:

“Kinnevik is a dream partner for us. We feel there is a great fit in both the strategic vision and the values of our companies. Our ambition is to make grocery shopping an effortless and inspiring activity for everyone and bring freedom in their everyday lives. Kinnevik has the right expertise and the right mindset to help us in this journey and we are very excited to work with them.”

For further information, visit www.kinnevik.com or contact:

Torun Litzén, Director Investor Relations
Phone +46 (0)70 762 00 50
Email press@kinnevik.com

Kinnevik is an industry focused investment company with an entrepreneurial spirit. Our purpose is to build digital businesses that provide more and better choice. We do this by working in partnership with talented founders and management teams to create, develop and invest in fast growing businesses in developed and emerging markets. We believe in delivering both shareholder and social value by building companies that contribute positively to society. Kinnevik was founded in 1936 by the Stenbeck, Klingspor and von Horn families. Kinnevik’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm’s list for large cap companies under the ticker codes KINV A and KINV B.

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Agreement signed with Thomas Meyer for the sale of Eurazeo’s stake in Desigual

Eurazeo

Paris, August 2, 2018 – Eurazeo announces today that it has signed an agreement with Thomas Meyer,
the founder and controlling shareholder of Desigual, the Spanish apparel retailer, to sell him its 10% stake
in the company.

Since its investment in 2014, Eurazeo has strongly supported the strategic transformation of Desigual
through the promotion of a new brand image, its digital channel, the expansion in Latin America, the
optimization of the distribution network as well as through a strengthening of the company’s governance.
After four years of mutual cooperation, the joint owners have decided that, given the market environment
and their respective timeframes and objectives, it is in their and Desigual‘s best interests that Thomas
Meyer become the company’s sole shareholder.
This sale will generate net proceeds of €141.9 million for Eurazeo and its investment partners, and €105.7
million for Eurazeo’s stake representing a return on its initial investment of 0.5x.
***
About Eurazeo
o With a diversified portfolio of over €16 billion in assets under management, including over €10 billion from
investment partners, Eurazeo is a leading global investment company with offices in Paris and Luxembourg,
New York, Shanghai and Sao Paulo. Its purpose and mission is to identify, accelerate and enhance the
transformation potential of the companies in which it invests. The firm covers most private equity segments
through its five investment divisions – Eurazeo Capital, Eurazeo Croissance, Eurazeo PME, Eurazeo
Patrimoine and Eurazeo Brands – and through three Idinvest business divisions: Venture Capital, Private
Debt and Dedicated Portfolio & Funds. Its solid institutional and family shareholder base, robust financial
structure free of structural debt, and flexible investment horizon enable Eurazeo to support its companies over
the long term. As a global long-term shareholder, the firm offers deep sector expertise, a gateway to global
markets, and a stable foothold for transformational growth to the companies it supports.
o Eurazeo is listed on Euronext Paris.
o ISIN: FR0000121121 – Bloomberg: RF FP – Reuters: EURA.PA

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AURELIUS acquires Ideal Shopping Direct

Aurelius Capital

Munich/London 24 July 2018 – AURELIUS Alpha Limited, a subsidiary of AURELIUS Equity Opportunities SE & Co. KGaA (ISIN DE000A0JK2A8) (“AURELIUS” or “the Group”), the listed pan-European mid-market investor, today announces its acquisition of Ideal Shopping Direct (“ISD” or “the company”), one of the UK’s leading multi-channel home shopping retailers, from Blackstone. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

With over 600,000 customers and FY17 revenues of £145 mn, Ideal Shopping Direct sources, designs and sells lifestyle and crafting products to consumers via a variety of dedicated interaction channels including TV shopping channels, social media platforms, websites and live events. The company has two flagship channels, Ideal World and Create & Craft which deliver video content across both the UK and the US. ISD employs c.800 people and is headquartered in Peterborough where it has dedicated facilities for the production and transmission of its shows as well as the creation and distribution of products to customers.

Following the acquisition, AURELIUS will work alongside the company’s existing management team to implement a transformation programme focused on driving operational improvement at the business, boost its UK brand recognition and enhance the breadth and quality of its customer offering.

Tristan Nagler, UK Managing Director of AURELIUS, commented: “Ideal Shopping Direct is a dynamic company with a loyal customer base, established infrastructure and strong position in two distinct and growing markets within TV shopping; craft and general merchandise, presenting a compelling investment opportunity for Aurelius. We look forward to working alongside ISD’s experienced management team to provide the operational and financial support needed to help the business meet its potential.”

Bill Adams, CEO of ISD, said: “We are very pleased to be partnering with AURELIUS, an investor with proven experience in the craft, TV shopping and omni-channel retail space. Its operational expertise and hands-on approach will significantly benefit ISD as we seek to reposition our business and achieve our growth objectives going forward.”

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EFG sold to Input Interiör AB

Hercules Capital

On May 8th 2018, the sale of EFG European Furniture Group to Input Interiör, was completed. Input is a leading player in the Swedish furniture and interior market and has a small operation in Finland. With the acquisition of EFG, Input Interiör expands its business to all the Nordic countries.

Herkules has owned EFG since 2007. The office furniture market is changing rapidly, and the combination of Input Interiör and EFG, will create a strong player to have a leading position in this market.

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Ardian enters exclusive discussions for the sale of its stake in Bricoprivé.com

Ardian

Paris, 28 March 2018 – Ardian, a world-leading private investment house, today announces that it has entered into exclusive discussions with Florac Investissements to sell its stake in Bricoprivé.com, the leading private sales website for DIY, gardening and home improvements products. As part of the sale, the founders, Julien Boué and Marc Leverger, are reinvesting in the Company.

Founded in Toulouse in 2012, Bricoprivé offers a wide range of professional-quality products at affordable prices. This positioning, coupled with its founders’ significant expertise, has enabled the Company to achieve rapid and profitable growth, with revenues increasing fourfold from €28 million in 2015 to provisionally €100 million in June 2018. Since Ardian’s investment Bricoprivé has opened in three international markets (Spain, Italy and Portugal) and acquired two companies with complementary activities (Racetools and Noova) in 2017, all the while continuing to grow its core offering.

Ardian made its first investment in June 2015 and financed a second transaction in June 2016 to support the company’s strong growth.

Julien Boué, Co-Founder of Bricoprivé.com, said: “This deal is the logical continuation of Bricoprivé’s development. We have strengthened the company by developing its expertise and digital and logistical tools, started internationalisation and overcome the challenges of external growth. The success of our strategy has enabled us to achieve revenues of €100 million sooner than anticipated, which has generated requests from various stakeholders, leading the way to a natural next stage of our growth.”

Marc Leverger, Co-Founder of Bricoprivé.com, added: “We are pleased to welcome Florac as shareholders in Bricoprivé. This deal supports our continued ambitious growth. We would like to thank Ardian for its support during what have been key moments of our development, enabling us to reach significant milestones of growth. We are happy that Ardian will be by our side for the new stage of our development.”

Laurent Foata, Head of Ardian Growth, added: “The founders of Bricoprivé have managed to create a leading company and have reached a significant size in just five years, desptive a very competitive market. Their entrepreneurial talent has made all the difference and we are happy to support a deal which will allow Marc and Julien to continue the company’s growth.”

Romain Chiudini, Director at Ardian Growth, added: “We are happy to have supported Bricoprivé’s ambitions. The company was able to embark on a impressive growth trajectory through the rapid implementation of a shared strategy and the quality of its management team.”

LIST OF PARTIES INVOLVED

Ardian: Laurent Foata, Romain Chiudini
Bricoprivé: Marc Leverger, Julien Boué
Financial adviser (Seller): Rothschild Transaction R (Pierre Sader, Benjamin Osdoit, Romain Galven)
Legal Adviser: Jones Day (Renaud Bonnet, Florent Le Prado)
VDD: Eight Advisory: Christophe Delas

ABOUT BRICOPRIVÉ.COM

Created in October 2012 in Toulouse and managed by Julien Boué and Marc Leverger, Bricoprive.com is the first website for private sales dedicated to DIY, gardening and home improvement.
As a major player in e-commerce in the DIY sector in France, Bricoprive.com organizes private sales for its 3 million members for the sector’s main brands (Facom, Legrand, Caterpillar, AEG Powertools) in three different product ranges: DIY, gardening, home, professional textile, car/motorcycle and high tech.
In agreement with these brands, Bricoprivé organizes 7 to 8 private integrated sales daily (logistics, customer service, webmarketing, sales…) on all their overstock and end-of-life products.
Regarded as a central sales hub (4 logistics platforms in France, commercial coverage across the country), with its community of highly targeted members the website also represents an excellent communications platform for brands.
After 3.5 years of very strong growth, nearly 55 million euros in volume of business over the last 12 months and the recruitment of 105 employees, Bricoprivé begins a new stage of its development with the opening of its sites in Italy and Spain.

ABOUT ARDIAN

Ardian is a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$67bn managed or advised in Europe, North America and Asia. The company is majority-owned by its employees. It keeps entrepreneurship at its heart and focuses on delivering excellent investment performance to its global investor base. Through its commitment to shared outcomes for all stakeholders, Ardian’s activities fuel individual, corporate and economic growth around the world.

Holding close its core values of excellence, loyalty and entrepreneurship, Ardian maintains a truly global network, with more than 490 employees working from 13 offices across Europe (Frankfurt, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Zurich), North America (New York, San Francisco) and Asia (Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo). It manages funds on behalf of about 700 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Fund of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.

Follow Ardian on Twitter @Ardian

PRESS CONTACTS
ARDIAN
Headland
CARL LEIJONHUFVUD
cleijonhufvud@headlandconsultancy.com
Tel: +44 020 3805 4827

 

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Bygghemma has been listed on NASDAQ Stockholm

Fsn Capital

Bygghemma Group First AB (“Bygghemma” or the “Company”) – a portfolio company of FSN Capital IV, FSN Capital V and FSN Capital Project Growth – was listed on March 27th, 2018 on Nasdaq Stockholm. The initial public offering (the “IPO”) attracted very strong interest both from Swedish and international institutional investors as well as from the general public in Sweden. The offering was heavily oversubscribed.

Bygghemma Group First AB (“Bygghemma” or the “Company”) – a portfolio company of FSN Capital IV, FSN Capital V and FSN Capital Project Growth  – was listed on March 27th, 2018 on Nasdaq Stockholm. The initial public offering (the “IPO”) attracted very strong interest both from Swedish and international institutional investors as well as from the general public in Sweden. The offering was heavily oversubscribed.

The offering price in Bygghemma’s IPO was set at SEK 47.50 per share, which was in the middle of the communicated IPO range of SEK 45 – 50 per share. Assuming full exercise of the over-allotment option, the IPO will comprise 33.9m shares, corresponding to a total value of the IPO of approximately SEK 1.6 billion and 32 percent of the total number of shares outstanding. The FSN Capital Shareholders will hold approximately 50 percent of the shares after the IPO, assuming the over-allotment option is exercised in full. The market capitalization of Bygghemma at IPO was SEK 5.1 billion.

The cornerstone investors, Arbejdsmarkedets Tillægspension (ATP) and Creades, acquired 5,263,157 shares in the Offering, corresponding to SEK 250 million.

Mikael Olander, President and CEO of Bygghemma Group comments: ”We are very happy about the large interest that has been shown during the listing process for Bygghemma Group and our strong position as the superior online provider of home improvement products in the Nordic region. We are looking forward to continue to grow and develop the company, now in a listed environment.”

Henrik Theilbjørn, Chairman of the Board of Bygghemma Group says: “Bygghemma Group has established a leading Nordic platform and has great potential for both substantial organic and acquisition-driven growth and improved results in the coming years. The company targets a large and attractive market under digital transformation where it has a clear online market leadership. We are looking forward to continue to create value in a listed environment and welcome all new shareholders to follow us into the exciting future of Bygghemma Group.”

Peter Möller, Partner, FSN Capital Partners (investment advisor to the FSN Capital Shareholders): “Bygghemma Group operates on a fast-growing market where it has established a strong position as the leading online provider of home improvement products in the Nordic region. Over the last years the company has implemented several important strategic initiatives, made add-on acquisitions and improved its market position. We look forward to continue supporting the company and participate in the development of Bygghemma Group, now in a listed environment.”

Bygghemma has been listed on NASDAQ Stockholm

About Bygghemma Group
Bygghemma Group is the leading online provider of home improvement in the Nordic region . The Company offers its customers a broad  product assortment at competitive prices with convenient home delivery. Sales are predominantly made online and most orders are delivered directly from the supplier to the end customer.

During 2015-2017, net sales grew by a CAGR of 44 percent, with an improvement in adjusted EBITA margin from 2.5% in 2015 to 5.0% in 2017. In 2017, Bygghemma Group reported net sales of SEK 4.0 billion and adjusted EBITA of SEK 197.0 million, corresponding to an adjusted EBITA margin of 5.0%. Pro forma net sales for 2017 (which includes acquisitions completed during 2017) amounted to SEK 4.4 billion.

Since inception in 2006, Bygghemma Group has expanded its product offering, made significant operational investments and broadened its geographical presence in Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark. As of 1 January 2018, the Company’s webstores are supported by 72 showrooms, customer.

 

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Experienced online retail investor Verdane Capital invests in navabi

Verdane Capital

navabi, the global leader in plus size fashion, partners with Verdane Capital IX, the Nordic investor in online retail and technology enabled companies.

Verdane Capital IX has invested an 8-figure euro sum to fuel navabi’s ongoing growth. The investor is taking over all shares of Bauer Venture Partners, while investing an additional higher amount. All other previous investors – such as Index Ventures – remain on board in navabi. Verdane Capital is well-known in the online retail space, having invested in Boozt.com, known by some as the ‘Nordic Zalando’, which was successfully listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm Stock Exchange in 2017.

 

With the current financing, navabi has set the course for continued profitable growth and further expansion of its market leadership in the plus size segment. Today, two thirds of navabi’s sales go to the German home market, and the company plans to boost its international sales going forward, particularly in the UK, but also in other markets such as Scandinavia. navabi will further use the investment to emphasise technology development, as the company’s success is significantly based on their data and automation focus. Having achieved its goal of reaching profitability during a period of growth based on this data-driven strategy, navabi plans to further grow its in-house data science and artificial intelligence systems to better serve the needs of its international customer base. Data-driven merchandising will also continue to help navabi expand its popular range of own brands.

 

navabi’s investment strategy is focused on long-term healthy and profitable growth and working with fashion-experienced partners. Bahman Nedaei, co-founder of navabi, said: “We are delighted to partner with Verdane Capital IX who has strong roots in the fashion and online retail industry and who shares our vision of sustainable and profitable growth.” Co-founder Zahir Dehnadi added: “We think all women, irrespective of size, should be able to find beautiful and high quality clothes, and our goal is for navabi to become synonymous with plus size fashion. Buying clothes when you are plus size can be challenging but by understanding what our customers need and desire, we ensure that shopping at navabi is a truly enjoyable experience.”

 

The plus size market is experiencing sustained growth, as demonstrated by the 270% increase in Google searches for ‘plus size’ in Europe over the last five years. Verdane Capital IX is looking forward to contributing to navabi’s growth journey. “navabi has a dedicated and highly competent team, a great offering and a strong growth potential in an attractive niche. Combined with our experience and expertise in building online retail winners, we believe we have the perfect set-up for creating a global market leader in plus sized fashion,” explained Staffan Mörndal, Partner at Verdane Capital Advisors.

 

The navabi team is run by the founders Zahir Dehnadi and Bahman Nedaei from Germany, with an office in London, and is dedicated to the needs of stylish plus size women worldwide. The company sells the world’s largest selection of plus styles. Over 150 well-known labels such as Marina Rinaldi Sport and Levi’s can be found on the website. Further, navabi has successfully launched own brands which are growing strongly and already account for one third of the company’s sales. navabi is available in more than 30 countries, including Germany, the UK, France and the USA.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Michaela Krause, m.krause@navabi.de or +49 172 65 32 544

Staffan Mörndal, staffan.morndal@verdanecapital.com or +46 70 93 15 235

 

About navabi

navabi is the global leader in plus size fashion. We curate and create the best and most inspirational plus size fashion collections and offer a ecommerce experience for our style savvy customers. More information can be found at: www.navabi.co.uk

 

About Verdane Capital

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 either in a single company, or in 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 29 employees working out of offices in Copenhagen, Helsinki, Oslo and Stockholm. More information can be found at: www.verdanecapital.com

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