Our investment philosophy
Our investment philosophy is characterized by our willingness to co-operate in the best mutual interests, to be reliable, predictable, and to have a good understanding of the respective risk exposure. Accordingly, we follow a value-oriented and conservative approach in selecting and structuring investments. Jointly with the entrepreneur we will secure a constant growth path thus increasing the company’s value. In order to achieve capital appreciation of the Company’s assets this investment philosophy is in practice implemented as follows:
- Acquisition of appropriate minority (> 25%) or majority positions in the Portfolio Companies – as the case may be. Provided that we have identified good reason to believe in a future rise in the enterprise value we are open to choose the best structure for the respective investment.
- We will be supporting Portfolio Companies through our network and by board representation and/or by appointing professional management to non-executive positions, or taking any other action necessary to enhance the performance of the relevant companies. We do not act on behalf of the entrepreneur but see us as a team that shares the same entrepreneurial spirit and motivation;
- Right from the beginning of our investment we ensure that a Portfolio Company’s management interests are fully aligned with the interests of the investor;
- We provide contractual certainty and financial transparency for any Portfolio Company;
- At the time of the investment we start developing together clear exit strategies to create a reliable basis for the future. However, due to the conservative and long-term orientation of our investment approach we typically stay invested for a longer period than the “typical” private equity investor. Yet this approach requires a mutual understanding of the intended growth path and the corresponding risk management; and
- By appointing, if necessary, industry experts as representatives to the board of a Portfolio Company and by using a network spanning from banks to entrepreneurs, to other Portfolio Companies, we create, share and maintain a deep understanding of the relevant market.