27 PRIVATE EQUITY FIRM
OF THE YEAR AWARD
SPONSORED BY LAMPORT BASSITT WINNER Inflexion Private Equity
Above: Charles Thompson and Mark Williams of Inflexion
Right: Host Clive Coleman with Sean Kelly of sponsor Lamport Bassitt and Mark Williams
The first award of the evening was Private Equity Firm of the Year, sponsored by law firm Lamport Bassitt.
Three firms were shortlisted for the trophy: Inflexion Private Equity, Vine Street Capital and NVM Private Equity, which was hoping to mirror its triumph in the recent Thames Valley Deals Awards.
The audience heard that the Inflexion team is recognised as a leading equity investor in the lower mid-market.
Among the deals mentioned on the night was its successful backing of the MBO in 2012 of CTC Aviation Group, a global provider of pilot training services. CTC was keen to take advantage of the strong growth projected in the airline sector worldwide, particularly Asia, and Inflexion was described as the “ideal partner“ for the deal, based on its track record of successfully investing and building great businesses, international network of offices in Brazil, India and Asia, and its sector expertise.
It was also applauded for its support of Hampshire-based PIMS Group, a company which has historically grown 13% year on year, and which would figure again in the Deals Awards during the evening. Inflexion has also invested in Jersey-based Sanne Group.
Vine Street Capital is an experienced investor of private capital into businesses. After backing the MBO of Lymington Precision Engineers in 2011, it continues to support the business and, in November 2012, it invested in Petromedia, a Hampshire-based maritime business.
The firm looks for opportunities with buyouts, development capital and secondary investments, as well as turnarounds.
The third contender for the title was NVM Private Equity, well-established in the Solent region where it typically invests between £2 million and £10m in growing businesses.
It recently invested £3.5m development capital in Dorset-based Haystack Dryers, the world‘s leading designer and manufacturer of people dryers for theme parks worldwide. It was a deal which clearly caught the attention of the audience when it was a major contender for the title of Deal of the Year (under £25m) later in the evening.
NVM was also involved in the successful exit of Closer Still and Paladin Group and helped Kerridge Systems make its second bolt-on acquisition of Datawright during the year.
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – JULY/AUGUST 2013
www.businessmag.co.uk
With three such strong contenders, Sean Kelly, head of corporate at Lamport Bassitt, was invited to the stage, where he announced Inflexion Private Equity as the winner.
A thrilled Charles Thompson, partner, Inflexion Private Equity, said later: “We are delighted to have picked up two trophies at the prestigious Solent Deals Awards. Being crowned PE Firm of the Year and being recognised by our peers for the exit of Pims Group reflects our recent success and long term commitment to the region.
“On the evening there was a strong sense of optimism that activity levels are improving. At Inflexion, we continue to target mid- market investment opportunities and have met a number of exciting companies in the region with strong growth prospects.“
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