January 24, 2012
Getronics LATAM Investment Offers Expanding Global PE Firm a “Buy and Build” Opportunity in ICT Sector
Los Angeles, CA and Paris, France – January 24, 2012 – OpenGate Capital, a global private investment and acquisition firm, announced that it reached agreement to acquire the Latin American (LATAM) portfolio of businesses of global ICT service provider Getronics International, a subsidiary of KPN, a leading telecommunications and ICT provider in The Netherlands.
The acquired portfolio consists of three distinct country-wide operations located in Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, businesses that employ more than 2,000 professionals and provide a highly specialized range of services in workspace management, connectivity, datacenters, and consultancy to the largest global enterprise accounts in each of their respective countries. KPN’s divestment of Getronics LATAM is in accordance with its proven strategy to strengthen its global delivery capabilities for major international clients through partnerships. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.
This transaction marks OpenGate Capital’s second Latin American investment after the firm’s acquisition of Philips Business Communications, now rebranded “Sopho,” in 2010. OpenGate expects Getronics LATAM to be highly synergistic with Sopho, complementing and enriching the companies’ range of enterprise business solutions and expanding the breadth and reach of the companies’ blue-chip customer base. “Getronics LATAM is a perfect investment for OpenGate because it not only significantly expands our existing ICT services platform, but also reinforces our presence in Latin America, a region that offers tremendous opportunity for growth,” commented Andrew Nikou, managing partner and founder of OpenGate Capital. “We were attracted to the Getronics LATAM business for two main reasons: firstly, Getronics’ strong brand and undisputed reputation in the ICT sector; secondly, its clear complementarity with our existing Brazilian ICT business, which gives us a unique opportunity to accelerate the growth of this expanded platform both organically and through acquisitions.”
The businesses serve industries as diverse as financial services, oil and gas, telecommunications and pharmaceutical, as well as the public sector. For its most demanding international clients, Getronics LATAM will continue to work with the Getronics Workspace Alliance (GWA), a global network of seven members and 75 local service partners providing coordinated service coverage in more than 100 countries around the world.
Julien Lagrèze, the OpenGate Capital partner who led the deal for the firm, added, “After closing the transaction, we intend to move quickly in collaboration with Getronics LATAM management to further execute on our ‘buy and build’ strategy. This company and the region are ripe with ICT expansion opportunities. Given our operational expertise and experience in the region and Getronics LATAM’s strong foothold within large enterprises, OpenGate intends to fully leverage this high-potential investment.”
The Getronics LATAM acquisition reinforces OpenGate’s commitment to investing in mission-critical technology-driven businesses, while continuing to build upon its highly diversified multi-platform portfolio of companies. OpenGate Capital investments include businesses such as: the iconic TVGuide Magazine; Gabriel North America, a leading OEM/Aftermarket manufacturer of specialty automotive parts; Fusion Paperboard and Norpaper Avot-Vallée, specialty packaging paper manufacturers based in the U.S. and Europe; Kotka Mills, a world-renowned paper mill based in Finland; and Golden Guernsey Dairy, a leading dairy-processing business in the Midwestern U.S.
