From January 2017, Lagersmit Sealing Solutions B.V. has become fully owned by Anders Invest Co-Invest Fund 1, a fund which bundles the investment power of Anders Invest, De Hoge Dennen and 11 other coinvestors. On 12 December 2016 the investors, Rabobank Participaties and director and majority shareholder Willem Steenge reached definitive agreement on selling the shares. Willem Steenge will continue to represent the company as CEO.
Selling the shares is another step forward in Lagersmit’s long-term vision. Over recent years Lagersmit has specialised increasingly in manufacturing and servicing seals for the rotating shafts of pumps, ships and tidal turbines. The highly-automated production facility and associated office premises were opened in 2010. With the independence from the former parent company Royal IHC, Lagersmit acquired the unique position of becoming an independent sealing OEM. The expansion of the global network and product portfolio also expanded Lagersmit’s client base.
The investment by Anders Invest makes further knowledge and expertise available to maintain the growth which has been achieved, and to realise it further. Willem Steenge will continue to represent the company as CEO.
Willem Steenge, CEO Lagersmit: “In the past years the focus has been on further developing Lagersmit’s strength. The company has a strong international network, and an extremely solid product portfolio with strong products which are manufactured in the Netherlands. Our products and services are marketed by a strong team of specialists. Our approach makes removing any concerns from our worldwide clients paramount. We call that Peace of Mind. I have worked towards this for the past 16 years, and I will continue to do so in the years ahead. Anders Invest devotes itself to fine companies like Lagersmit with the same commitment. The sale to Anders Invest guarantees that Lagersmit will also be able to continue the growth it has achieved, over the longer term.”
Gert-Jan Huisman, CEO of Anders Invest: “We enter into this with a long-term vision where the focus is on stability and continuing the growth ambitions. Anders Invest wants to ensure that this unique, 160- year-old company, along with its management team and some 60 employees, will continue to evolve.”
Lagersmit has been based in Alblasserwaard in the Netherlands since 1856 and has one mission: To deliver peace of mind with the best sealing solutions and service for ships, pumps and tidal turbines. Examples of applications include seals for ship’s shafts, bow thrusters, tidal turbines and pump shafts. From it’s hightech production facility in Ablasserdam, it serves the global maritime, dredging, energy, water and industrial markets with sealing solutions. The company’s network of offices, agents and service stations covers the entire world.
Anders Invest is an investment firm focusing on Dutch SMEs of a technical nature and with proven revenue and profit capacities. It makes risk-bearing capital available from €500,000 to €10,000,000 for both minority and majority holdings. The Anders Invest Evergreen Fund has already invested in five successfully growing companies: Metalura, gAvilar, Stackdoor and Kiekens en Bos Machines. Anders Invest’s approach is characterised by a focus on the long term, sustainable value development (slow equity), practical and active management support (supportive), and an honest and transparent approach (straight). The fund’s management invests 10% of the total fund volume from its own resources.