By the end of May, KS Klima-Service, a.s., the Czech leader in the development, production and supply of air filters and filtering equipment for atmospheric filtration, based in Příbram, will change its ownership. Genesis Private Equity Fund II (GPEF II), with 77% ownership stake, Mr. Jiří Beseda, the founder of KS Klima, with 20% share and KS Klima top managers with the remaining share, agreed to sell 100% of KS Klima to the Germany-based global producer of air handling equipment and filters TROX GmbH.
After 25 years of continued growth and innovation since its start as a family business, KS Klima-Service successfully completed its transition into a major regional player in the atmospheric filtration equipment. In cooperation with Genesis Capital, the company has grown its sales and product portfolio, expanded in foreign markets and managed to remain a very attractive employer in the region. The final step of this transition was a relocation from the original seat Dobříš into new custom- built production premises in Příbram completed in 2018. The location increased production capacity by 50% and provides new possibilities for further development and growth with the new strategic investor. In 2018, the company posted revenues of € 10 million and had almost 100 employees.
The entry of Genesis into KS Klima-Service in 2012 was an example of a successful generation succession. The original founders, Mr. and Ms. Beseda, intended to step down from day-to-day management of the company, however, were still interested in its future. Genesis offered to purchase majority share and the Beseda family kept minority stake. KS Klima existing and new managers purchased a smaller minority stake along Genesis, which considers experienced and competent management teams to be one of the most important factors determining success of a company. Mr. Jan Tauber, Managing Partner of Genesis Capital, said: “We are very pleased with the outcome of the investment into KS Klima. Since 2012, KS Klima transformed from a successful growing family business to an independently managed mid-size company. Over the six years, it doubled its revenues and operating profit and has further prepared for growth by moving to newly built state-of-the-art factory.”
“It was very good decision to choose Genesis Capital as our partner in 2012. In the following years, we were able to fulfil all our goals: continued development of air filter production, the growth of employment in the company and construction of a new production plant. KS Klima acquisition by TROX GmbH will be the perfect completion of our entrepreneurial journey. We believe that TROX GmbH, as one of the world´s leading producers of air filters and ventilation systems, will continue to develop and manufacture filters in KS Klima and will bring new interesting developments and challenges to the firm and its team,” says Jiří Beseda, the minority shareholder, commenting on the cooperation with Genesis and common achievements over the past 7 years.
Mr. Jan Berger, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of KS Klima added: “On behalf of the management, we are pleased to say that TROX GmbH, a company with a very long history and excellent reputation, will become the new owner of our company. In 2018, we relocated to a new production hall in Příbram to prepare for further growth. I believe that this connection with a strong strategic partner will bring excellent opportunities for the future, improve our market position and enhance further development of the company.“
Commenting on the acquisition, Mr. Udo Jung and Mr. Thomas Mosbacher, Members of the Board of Management of TROX GmbH stated: “It is our goal to increase our filter expertise, to optimise production synergies and to strengthen and expand our Czech location. By acquiring KS Klima-Service we also strengthen our market presence in Eastern Europe. By operating under competitive conditions, we will also have an excellent possibility to extend the filter business throughout Europe. We are looking forward to the long-term cooperation starting now.”
The sellers were advised by Deloitte (Prague) as transaction advisor and by Kinstellar on legal aspects. “We at Genesis Capital are pleased that KS Klima-Service will join a global player in the industry, which will be able to utilize the strong foundations and potential in the company for further development in Příbram, in the Czech Republic, and in the broader region. I wish the company and TROX all the best and believe that their common future will be as successful as the cooperation has been for us.” concludes the investment Radan Hanzl, Partner of Genesis Capital, responsible for this project.
The company was established in 1993 and started by importing air filters from Germany. In 1995, KS Klima-Service launched its own production in Dobříš, and since then invested significantly into new production and R&D technologies. In 2018, the company with almost 100 employees moved to brand- new custom-built production premises in Příbram. KS Klima-Service has more than 2,000 business customers in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and other European countries. Its main products include pocket and panel filters, HEPA and compact filters, reactivation of activated carbon and special filtration systems and their designs.
TROX is a global leader in the development, manufacture and sale of components, units and systems for the ventilation and air conditioning of rooms. With 28 subsidiary companies in 26 countries on 5 continents, 14 production facilities, and importers and representatives, TROX is present in over 70 countries. The TROX GROUP currently has nearly 4,000 employees and generates revenues of roughly EUR 500 million.
Genesis Capital provides advisory to private equity funds offering access to financing for growth and development of small and medium-sized companies in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary and Austria. Since its foundation in 1999, Genesis Capital has provided consultancy to four private equity funds with a cumulative size exceeding EUR 170 million. These funds supported over 50 firms, having invested over CZK 3 billion. Many of those firms became leaders in their respective fields also thanks to their cooperation with Genesis Capital. The current fund, Genesis Private Equity Fund III (GPEF III), with the size of over EUR 80 million has been actively investing since 2015. Investors in GPEF III are mostly international and local institutions and investment firms such as the European Investment Fund (EIF), Česká spořitelna (member of Erste Group), Amundi Czech Republic (member of international group Amundi), Kooperativa pojišťovna and Česká podnikatelská pojišťovna (both members of Vienna Insurance Group), a Finnish fund-of-funds firm eQ Private Equity, a pension fund of a renowned global company, and a Czech family office. Currently, the Genesis funds hold shares in the following companies: GTH multicatering, ST Security, KS Klima-Service, Quinta-Analytica, HP Tronic/Datart, D2G, Sanborn, Stangl Technik Holding and CN Group.
For more information, please visit: www.genesis.cz/en
Kamil Chalupa, CHM Communications
E-mail: chalupa@chmc.cz; Tel.: +420 602 865 834