BGF injects £10m into Ocee Design

The combined business will be named Ocee International Group. BGF stated the fresh capital would be used to scale the company's operations in the UK and internationally, with the acquisition of Four Design granting Ocee a permanent base in Denmark.

Steve Halbert, a former head of UK M&A at KPMG, has joined the enlarged company's board as non-executive chair.

The £10m ticket size sits at the upper end of BGF's usual investments. This year, the investor notably invested $7.2m in marketing technology software and services provider Adestra in January, and supported existing portfolio company Better Bathrooms with an extra £4m of funding earlier in July.

BGF had deployed a similar amount of equity back in August last year when it injected £10m into London-based communications agency Four Communications.

Company
Ocee is a supplier of contemporary commercial furniture with showrooms in Northampton and London. The business employs 85 staff, including 50 specialising in the assembly of furniture.

Four Design is based in Denmark and sells furniture throughout Europe, working with manufacturing partners in North America, China and Australia.

People
BGF – Mark Freer, James Syrotiuk (investors).

Advisers
Equity – Browne Jacobson (legal); Claritas Tax (tax).
Company – EMW Law (legal); Grant Thornton (corporate finance, financial due diligence).

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• Topics
• Expansion
• UK / Ireland
• Industrials
• BGF (Business Growth Fund)
• Build-up