Naxicap's Accent bolts on Covebo

José Rojo
06 July 2015

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Accent Group, a Naxicap Partners-backed Belgian human resources and personnel selection agency, has acquired Dutch recruitment specialist Covebo.

Accent's purchase of Covebo will see the former incorporate the latter's 173 employees and €78m revenues.

The bolt-on is the latest in a series of acquisitions undertaken by Accent between since 2006, with six such deals having been sealed during this time. The recruitment agency was most recently supported by Naxicap as it picked up Paris-based consultancy firm Abylsen from previous owner Vespa Capital.

The deal, featuring a debt facility underwritten by Banque Populaire, LCL and Caisse d'Epargne Rhône-Alpes, saw Accent secure a 12% stake in Abylsen, according to unquote" data. Meanwhile, Naxicap Partners acquired a 50% interest and the management bought all remaining shares.

Accent expects to continue its buy-and-build strategy, and aims to generate €1bn in revenues and €100m in EBITDA by 2018. According to the GP, more than €90m has been invested in the business for bolt-on purposes to date.

Previous funding
In 2006, Accent Group (then Accent Jobs for People) first came under private equity ownership when VC firm Gimv invested to secure a one-third stake in the business. Management retained the remaining two-thirds, according to unquote" data.

The recruitment agency changed hands six years later, when Gimv's exited its minority interest to Naxicap Partners. The SBO, completed in May 2012, saw Accent's management team remain majority shareholder.

Company
Founded in 1995 by Philip Cracco and Conny Vandendriessche, Accent Group provides services in the recruitment, outsourcing, engineering and finances segments under the Accent Jobs and Covebo, Logi-Technic, Abylsen and Peak6 brands. Headquartered in Roeselare, Belgium, the business is expected to generate €609m in revenues and employ around 1,500 people following Covebo's acquisition.

Covebo has headquarters in Nijkerk, the Netherlands. It specialises in recruitment and selection services within the construction, engineering, logistics and food industries. Currently employing 173 staff across 18 agencies in the Netherlands, Germany and Poland, the company posted €78m in sales in 2014.

People
Naxicap Partners CEO Eric Aveillan led the deal for the GP. Jérôme Caille is CEO at Accent Group.