The Paris Private Equity team advised Equistone Partners Europe on the acquisition of Gardengate, a leading European manufacturer of aluminium gates and doors. Crest Capital Partners will retain a minority stake alongside the founder and management team.
Founded in 1997 in Portugal, Gardengate has built a strong position in the French market, which currently accounts for 85% of the group's sales and has also reported fast-growing sales in Benelux, Germany, and the UK.
Leveraging its strong European network, Equistone intends to support Gardengate’s growth strategy in a number of ways: expanding into new or underpenetrated geographies including Benelux, Germany and the UK; widening its product range; and continuing to develop and optimise its growing online presence. Equistone will also provide support as the company looks to regroup the majority of its Portuguese production units under the same roof to increase production capacity and enhance profitability.
Equistone Partners Europe is an independent investment firm, which operates across France, Germany, Switzerland and the UK, investing as a strategic partner alongside management teams.
The Goodwin team was led by Thomas Maitrejean and included Simon Servan-Schreiber on corporate aspects, Adrien Paturaud and Laurent Bonnet on finance aspects and Marie-Laure Bruneel on tax aspects.