Capital Croissance, BPI back expo business Spas

Alice Tchernookova
11 January 2017

Tweet
Facebook
LinkedIn
Google plus
Send to

Capital Croissance and BPI France have co-invested in French events organiser Spas Organisation, taking over from previous majority owner Socadif.

The deal sees Socadif, which had been invested in the group since 2010, reduce its stake, replaced by Capital Croissance as new majority shareholder.

BPI, meanwhile, is entering the group as minority co-investor alongside Capital Croissance. The group's CEO, Patricia Berthomier-Massip, also re-invested alongside the two new backers. With Socadif's support, the group's turnover has doubled over the last six years, having reached €11m, against €5.5m when the GP entered the group.

The fresh support provided by BPI and Capital Croissance should enable Spas to continue increasing the number of events organised per year both in France and Belgium, and to develop its online platform further.

Debt
The transaction was supported by a senior debt package co-arranged by Crédit du Nord, La Banque Postale, and Crédit Agricole, representing a 2x EBITDA multiple.

Previous funding
In September 2010, Socadif backed the management buy-in of Spas by acquiring a majority stake in the group. According to unquote" data, the deal was valued under the €25m mark. The buy-in was also supported by private investors.

Company
Spas is an events organisation group specialising in trade fairs for organic products and sustainable development in France. Spas claims it organises a total of 18 fairs in France and Belgium, most of which are B2C events.

Headquartered in Paris, the group currently generates €11m in revenues with €1.5m EBITDA, according to French publication Capital Finance.

People
BPI France – Elyssa Maufras Du Chatellier (investment director); Matthieu Rabeisen (investment associate).
Capital Croissance – Régis Lamarche, Eric Neuplanche (managing partners).
Socadif – François Hervey (CEO); Thierry Antonini (associate director).

Advisers
Equity – Grant Thornton, Nathalie Margraitte, Louis-Olivier Martin-Prével (financial due diligence); KPMG, Corinne Gabaud, Julien Fouquet (financial due diligence); Themis Conseil, Charlotte Lagrange, Siham Belarbi (legal); AyacheSalama, David Ayache (legal).
Vendor – Cambon Partners, David Salabi, Oriane Benveniste-Profichet (corporate finance); Bernet Castagnet Wantz & Associés, Laurent Ségal (legal).