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The strategy of Apax Partners is to support companies with high growth potential, regardless of their stage of development, in six specialist sectors:
Information Technologies
Information Technologies, which lie at the heart of the strategy and processes of any business, is a sector in constant flux. The opening of a company’s information systems to the outside world, the development of network computing and roaming systems, changing business models and the reservoir of innovation specific to this industry all mean that this sector offers numerous investment opportunities.
In concrete terms, we identify investment opportunities in certain segments of the Information Technologies that match our expertise and include hardware and software technologies, emerging application areas, and services based on the mastery of these new technologies.
Our desire to participate in projects with the potential to create high added value and supported by ambitious entrepreneurs has resulted in our investments in young companies such as ASK (smartcards and contactless tickets), Hubwoo (online purchasing systems and processes), and in more established companies such as CEGID (financial and accounting software), Cartesis (Business Performance Management software), Parkeon (world leader in on-street parking management solutions), IEE (developer of sensors for automobile security systems), Odyssey (financial software), GFI (IT service provider) and Altran (European leader in innovation consulting).
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Telecom
2009 was an active year for the telecom sector. The major players in the market maintained the level of their investments, particularly with the deployment of optical fibre in major metropolitan areas. Innovative services – 3G, IP-TV, VoD, etc. – have continued to develop very fast: in particular, mobile broadband has made a significant breakthrough in Western Europe. Finally, the consolidation of the sector continued among operators and Internet service providers, reflecting the dynamic performance of the industry as a whole. Despite the turbulence in the financial markets and the background of global recession, the great majority of telecom players are achieving generally positive operating results.
In this context, the investments that we look for fall into two main categories:
First are companies with recurring cash flows that allow for the raising of debt financing through an LBO operation. This concerns certain telecom operators, cable operators and technology companies that have achieved a level of maturity.
The second type of opportunity consists of companies that are currently benefiting from the new dynamic performance of the sector, whose cash flow generation profile permits only a limited level of debt. The companies we look for are businesses, which, as well as having a top-rank management team and a technology that is most often proprietary, have been able to demonstrate their ability to increase sales rapidly and become leading global players.
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Retail & Consumer Goods
The desire of consumers to find differentiated goods and services in attractive spaces is creating an extremely wide field of opportunities for consumer goods and specialist retailing.
However, the slowdown in global consumption underscores the selectivity of consumers as they assess different brands when making purchasing decisions, while facing what they perceive to be limited purchasing power and growth prospects in the near future.
The investment strategy of Apax Partners in specialist retailing and consumer goods is designed to support ambitious entrepreneurs who want to build leader companies in their market, founded on strong and differentiated store or retail concepts, and on brands or store names with a broad and authentic territory.
Apax Partners is interested in all market segments: home appliances, personal equipment, direct retail and e-commerce, B-to-B distribution, and consumer goods from major brands and distributors, with a preference for concepts in which the offer is created and managed by the distributor.
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Media
The media sector is continuing its rapid transformation. The development of new technologies and the rapid growth of the Internet are encouraging the emergence of new models and permanently transforming an industry that is consolidating itself against the backdrop of a changing regulatory framework. In this context, there are opportunities to create value. In order to identify and finance these opportunities, our strategy is to maintain a high level of expertise in all media sectors by contributing our know-how in information and telecom technologies.
The quality of the management team, the value of the brands, the sustainability of the business models in a digital world and the potential for growth are decisive factors in the selection of our investments. Thus, we finance high-potential companies in sectors where we have developed real expertise and which offer attractive prospects of growth. Business, scientific and technical information, marketing and research services, traditional and online media agencies, rights, premium content and Internet content platforms are the sectors that we favour.
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Healthcare
Healthcare represents an increasing share of individual and organisational expenses in our society. Underlying factors such as an ageing population and technological advances help to drive this basic trend and create opportunities to develop innovative, high-performing companies capable of answering this growing social need.
Thanks to the industry expertise of a team of Health specialists, we are assisting the development of established players with strong growth potential in areas such as health services (hospitalisation structures, home health care and medical analysis); we are also investing in innovative activities such as medical devices, and in niche pharmaceutical laboratories. Finally, we are supporting dynamic, ambitious companies in related activities such as dermo-cosmetics, galenic development, and services and databases for health organisations. The quality of the teams of executives and entrepreneurs is a key factor in our choice of investments.
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Business & Financial Services
Throughout 2009, business services have demonstrated a strong overall resilience. Outsourcing of non-core service activities has proved to be a well-adapted response to a difficult macro-economic context, as it allows corporates to control their cost base, find their way through an increasingly complex regulatory framework and positively manage social issues. In such a context, Business Process Outsourcers as well as Facility Managers continue to see an increase in the number of RFPs issued by clients and therefore continue to be positioned on strong development trends.
In these fields, a number of independent players are currently taking advantage of disposals from diversified groups. Through its strong experience of build-up transactions as well as sector expertise, our dedicated Business Services team is well positioned as a partner of choice for outstanding managers building leading companies in these activities.
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