Norvestor invests in Green Group Holding AB
Norvestor VIII SCSp (“Norvestor VIII”) has signed agreements to acquire Impecta Fröhandel AB and LOG AS, through a newly established holding company Green Group Holding AB.
Impecta has a leading position as a Swedish B2C online speciality retailer of seeds and garden related equipment. With more than 45 years’ experience in supplying seeds to consumers, Impecta has built product assortment and diversity, competence and brand awareness that few competitors can match in the Nordics. Impecta has become renowned for its high-quality seeds, carefully tested and selected for the Nordic climate. The founding motto remains today “from growers, to growers”. Following c. 30% revenue CAGR 2015-2020, current revenues are c SEK 105 million. Impecta has c. 40 full-time employees and is headquartered in Julita (Sweden).
LOG is a leading Norwegian wholesaler to the B2B professional gardener market, with a fast-growing e-commerce B2C platform through the subsidiary Hageglede AS, and increasingly include a wide range of landscape entrepreneurs, landscaping architects, and specialty retailers. The company is a trusted supplier in its industry, with a history going back almost 100 years. LOG has built leading expertise within professional gardening and horticulture, delivering a broad range of products from seeds and fertilizers to LED lights and watering systems. Current revenues are c NOK 375 million with an EBITDA margin of c. 8%. LOG has c 45 full-time employees and is headquartered in Oslo (Norway).
“Over the past four months we have gotten to know the Norvestor team and found that we share a set of values, a mutual ambition for growth and a shared vision for how to create a Nordic leading supplier to the passionate consumer, semi-professionals, and professional growers. We are excited to embark on a new chapter of the company’s history with Norvestor and LOG as partners in the creation of Green Group”, says Veronica Gårdestig, CEO of Impecta
“LOG has a strong market position within professional horticulture and an ambition to leverage our comprehensive offering, strong brand, deep knowledge and reliable supply chain, to service existing and new customer segments. Since 2012 we have seen a continuous annual growth rate of 9%, based on a good underlying market combined with an internal drive to be the best knowledge partner for our customers. A partnership with Impecta has been at the top of our wish list for a long time, and Norvestor has been instrumental in bringing our two companies together. We thank our previous shareholders for their great support, and look forward to an exciting future with Norvestor and Impecta”, says Christian Sørum, CEO LOG
“The combination of Impecta and LOG creates a great platform. At the centre there is a shared belief in thought leadership and expertise, value to the customer, quality products, and the increasing importance of online communication and sales. Combining the companies strengthens value propositions and distribution to the passionate consumers and the competent professional, as well as the fast-growing niche of semi-professional growers, in Norway and in Sweden. Growth is underpinned by increasing demand for locally grown foods with no pesticides, without genetically modified organisms (GMO), and the very important contributions to reduced climate gas footprint from an increased share of vegetables and reduced food waste, packaging and transport. We firmly believe the group has an exciting future ahead including good organic growth and further consolidation opportunities”, says Christian Sontum, Partner at Norvestor Advisory.
Following the acquisition, Norvestor is the majority shareholder in Green Group Holding AB with c. 67% of the shares, and Veronica Gårdestig (CEO Impecta), Michael Karlsson (CMO Impecta), and Christian Sørum (CEO LOG), has reinvested with Norvestor and hold the remaining shares.
For further information:
Christian Sontum, Partner at Norvestor Advisory
Telephone: +47 99 15 36 98
Email: christian.sontum@norvestor.com
Norvestor is a leading private equity firm focusing on mid-market buyouts in the Nordic region with offices in Oslo, Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Luxembourg. The team has worked together since 1991 making it one of the most experienced private equity teams in the Nordics, having executed 77 investments with more than 300 follow-on M&A transactions, in addition to executing 52 exits including 15 IPOs. The Norvestor funds seek to invest in growth companies in the Nordic mid-market that have potential to achieve a leading Nordic or international position, typically through organic growth, acquisitions across fragmented industries and by geographic expansion. Read more at www.norvestor.com