Founders and families

Over the years we have been engaged with family-owned and founder-led companies across many industries, supporting them in a full or partial divestment of their businesses to private equity partners or strategic buyers.

Divesting a family- or founder owned business brings additional dimensions into a process and requires a special level of understanding for the owners heritage and priorities for the future. Our engagements most often involve finding a partner to accelerate a business plan, taking risks and make investments which can be difficult to fund or justify in a family-setting, bringing new capabilities in the organisation or diversifing the family’s economic exposure. A successful divestment encompasses not only obtaining the best price and terms, but also finding the best partner to successfully bring the legacy forward.

We have advised more than 20 family and founder owned companies divesting all or parts of their shareholdings. We have helped assess relevant exit-routes and assisted in preparing their companies for a divestment process. We devote much time before launching an external process towards potential buyers, evaluating available exit-options, whether that being to private equity or strategic buyers with the pros and cons that represent for the family, structuring of future ownership- and governance models while in parallel, preparing the company for divestment, developing the investment case and solid documentation to back it.

Some examples of our advisory services to founders and families:

• Most recently, advised the founders of GetWhy in connection with the company’s USD 35.5 m Series A commitment from PeakSpan Capital
• Advised the Schweers family on the divestment of Alumeco Group to Nordic Metal Holdings Inc. a newly incorporated US holding company associated with and managed as part of Amari Metals
• Advised the founder Emilie Konge: Konges Sløjd, on the majority divestment to and partnership with 3i
• Advised the founder and shareholders on the divestment of AUTOproff
• Advised the Mikkelsen family on the divestment of Jacob Holm to Glatfelter
• Advised the Lind family on the 100% divestment of Danske Commodities to Equinor
• Advised the Founders of Muuto and Maj Invest on the 100% divestment of Muuto to Knoll Inc.
• Advised the Nissen family on the divestment Nissens, brining Axcel in as a new majority shareholder
• Advised the Lajboschitz family on the divestment Tiger, bringing EQT in as a new majority shareholder
• Advised the Emborg family and Maj Invest on the 100% divestment of FanMilk to Abraj Group and Danone