Vækstfonden sells stake in Muuto to Maj Invest Equity

The private equity arm of Danish investment company Maj will take over the entirety of Vækstfonden's stake, while Muuto founders Kristian Byrge and Peter Bonnén will remain as majority shareholders.

Vækstfonden CEO Christian Motzfeldt told unquote" that, while he could not disclose the deal's size, the GP was "extremely satisfied" with the returns it had received on its initial DKK 8m investment.

He said it had not been a case of the GP forcing an exit, but rather that talks with the company had led to the conclusion that it was a sensible time to pass the torch, with a private equity fund being a natural successor.

Management hopes to accelerate the company's international expansion with the backing of Maj, whose managing partner, Erik Holm, will take a seat on Muuto's board.

Formerly known as LD Invest, Maj's previous investments include Danish sushi franchise Sticks'n'Sushi and wood flooring manufacturer Junckers.

Motzfeldt added he thought Muuto was a great case to illustrate how venture investment opportunities are available outside niche technology sectors and can be very lucrative.

Previous funding
Vækstfonden's intitial investment in Muuto was a DKK 8m funding round in May 2007.

Company
Founded in Denmark in 2006, Muuto makes furniture, lamps and accessories with a Nordic design. It has more than 1,300 distributors in 52 countries.

People
Vækstfonden vice president Ulrik Jørring worked on the deal for the VC. Kristian Byrge and Peter Bonnén are the founders of Muuto, while Erik Holm is a managing partner at Maj.

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• Topics
• Nordics
• Exits
• Consumer
• Expansion
• Denmark