Joining forces in business

Triacta, founded in 2010, is a trusted investor. We enjoy joining forces with entrepreneurs and management teams who have commercialised their expertise and built companies that are indispensable to their customers. Triacta supports these companies with advice, practical support and capital to further develop into category leaders.
Triacta has a focus on:

Partnerships with founder-led and
family-owned businesses
through an equity stake

Corporate carve-out
transactions

About us:

What we offer

Strong partner for entrepreneur and management

Triacta brings active commitment to a partnership. You can always rely on us. We are flexible, act as your sounding board and assist at strategic, operational or financial level. We can also assist with founder successions. Always grounded in a shared vision.

Internal improvements

We understand what it means to expand a business or to transform into the next phase. If required, we assist with specific projects, sometimes through deploying our own staff but often by bringing in experts. All without interfering with the role of the management team.

Supporting growth

We make an active contribution and built market leaders. We help to identify new opportunities and have experience with adapting businesses to often rapidly changing market circumstances. This could be related to new products or services, new markets, internationalisation, increasing sustainability, digitalisation or organisational changes.

Acquisitions

If growth can be achieved via acquisitions, we actively contribute by carrying out research, approaching potential acquisition candidates and subsequently facilitating the acquisition itself. Naturally, we also provide the capital required.

Team

We are knowledgeable, experienced, professional and constructive, not only during the good times, but also when business is not going so well.

Gerben Willems

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Max Kruitwagen

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Patrick Paardenkooper

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Paul van den Hoek

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Antje Degenhart

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Focus

We ample experience investing in:

Founder-led and family-owned businesses

Situations where we focus on are:

  • The entrepreneur/family wishes to sell all or some of their equity interest
  • The entrepreneur/family foresees growth opportunities for their business and is searching for a reliable, capable and experienced partner with financing capabilities

We have entrepreneurial DNA, we understand the culture in a founder-led and family-owned business and have a great amount of affinity and experience with organisations in this setting. This makes us the right partner to assist the company, together with the other stakeholders, in its expansion

Carve-out transactions

Larger businesses regularly wish to sell off parts of their business no longer being part of their core activities

We are reliable and professional and have experience with the structuring of a transaction fulfilling the needs of all parties. We subsequently continue to assist management in separating  the different parts of the business and making them independent

Founder-led and
family-owned businesses

Situations where we focus on are:

  • The entrepreneur/family wishes to sell all or some of their equity interest
  • The entrepreneur/family foresees growth opportunities for their business and is searching for a reliable, capable and experienced partner with financing capabilities

We have entrepreneurial DNA, we understand the culture in a founder-led and family-owned business and have a great amount of affinity and experience with organisations in this setting. This makes us the right partner to assist the company, together with the other stakeholders, in its expansion

Carve-out transactions

Larger businesses regularly wish to sell off parts of their business no longer being part of their core activities

We are reliable and professional and have experience with the structuring of a transaction fulfilling the needs of all parties. We subsequently continue to assist management in separating  the different parts of the business and making them independent

Investment criteria

Sectors

We have relevant experience in a wide range of markets, but no specific sector focus. We rapidly establish the required understanding and move to the core of the matter.

Geography

Our investments are in businesses whose headquarters are located in the Netherlands. Obviously, we are enthusiastic about enterprises that operate abroad or have the potential to do so.

Size

At the time of our investment, businesses generally have a profitability of
EUR 1-10 million EBITDA.

Equity interest

We take both majority and minority interests. More importantly we seek alignment on the company strategy with our co-shareholder(s) and management.

Portfolio

Triacta has a proven track-record of successful investments

Fouder-led and family-owned businesses
Carve-out transactions

CSR

At Triacta we want to make our own contribution towards corporate social responsibility. We believe that successful businesses operations, investments and value creation can and should go hand in hand with the interests of humankind, the environment and society.

This is one of the top priorities of both Triacta and its shareholdings. Throughout the entire investment cycle, from selection to exit, we pay attention to how we can make a positive contribution.

Gerben Willems

Partner

Gerben Willems has over 20 years’ experience in consulting, operational management and investment.

Before he established Triacta in 2010, he was investment manager at H2 Equity Partners. He was also the founder and CEO of Cycleon, a leading European Reverse Logistics business active in more than 25 countries. The company was taken over at the end of 2007 by an American private equity fund. Gerben was also a consultant at McKinsey & Company Benelux. He gained an MBA from INSEAD in Fontainebleau and an MSc in Aerospace Engineering at Delft University of Technology.

Gerben is married with three sons and lives in Hilversum. His hobbies are tennis, mountain biking and flying.

Max Kruitwagen

Associate

Max is responsible for assessing and realising new investment opportunities and executing projects at companies within the Triacta portfolio.

Prior to joining Triacta, Max worked as a Senior Associate at ABN AMRO Corporate Finance where he was involved in various M&A processes, IPO’s and leveraged finance transactions.

Max has a MSc in Financial Economics from the Erasmus University Rotterdam. Max currently lives in Amsterdam. His hobbies are tennis, skiing and sailing.

Patrick Paardenkooper

Counselor

Patrick Paardenkooper has over 30 years of experience in the financial world, of which more than 20 years in Private Equity.

After 8 years at ABN AMRO he joined AlpInvest in 1998 where he became Partner in 2000. In 2005 he founded Dolfin Capital together with his AlpInvest colleague Niels Ruigrok.

He led over 20 transactions with Dolfin, including Axon, Cycleon, Movacolor, Cammio and Esdec. In recent years the focus of Dolfin has shifted from Direct to Co- and Fund Investments. At Triacta he fulfils the role of advisor. He studied Business Administration in Groningen.

Patrick is married, has a daughter and a son who both study in Groningen and lives in Naarden. His hobbies are skiing, sailing and music.

Patrick Paardenkooper

Paul van den Hoek

Counselor

Paul van den Hoek was a senior partner at Dutch law firm Stibbe until 2009.

During his law practice of 45 years, he mainly handled mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring, conflict resolution in companies, and mediation assignments.

He also served as a non-executive director at both larger and smaller companies, notably as non-executive chair at Corporate Express, Ballast Nedam, ASM International, Robeco Groep, Wavin, AON Group Nederland and Financieele Dagblad.

He was a professor of corporate law at Amsterdam Free University and dean of the Netherlands Bar Association.

Paul van den Hoek

Antje Degenhart

Office Manager

Antje Degenhart manages Triacta’s financial administration and back-office organisation.

She is pursuing a degree in business administration alongside her role at Triacta. Before joining Triacta, Antje served at a non-profit organisation and a law firm. She was educated as a Management Assistant at Schoevers.

Antje is married, with two sons, and lives in Leusden.

Antje Degenhart

Love for Denim - Vingino / Raizzed

Sector
Multibrand fashion

Type of investment:
Phased sale of family-run business; international growth

Status
in portfolio

Website
www.vingino.com

Vingino

Vingino is the Dutch market leader and the ultimate jeans label for kids: it is fashionable, robust and original. Apart from denim, Vingino also has an extensive collection of tops and jackets, complemented by underwear, swimwear, footwear, eyewear and accessories.

In addition to the brand Vingino, the company also brought a second successful brand to market under the name Raizzed. Raizzed supplies trendy clothes for both children and adults.

Triacta played an active role in establishing a new organisation, introducing robust operational and financial processes and thereby preparing Vingino for accelerated international and online growth.

“Triacta made the transaction process enjoyable and professional when I sold them an interest in my business. They contributed by strengthening the organisation and refining our strategy. Subsequently a new management team was established that successfully manages the business. This has resulted in good business performance and enabled the company to develop and realize accelerated growth”.
Bennie Dekker
founder and part-shareholder at Vingino
Logo Triacta

Kouwenberg Infra

Sector
Infrastructure

Type of investment:
Partial sale by owner-operator, accelerated growth, buy & build

Status
in portfolio

Website
www.kouwenberginfra.nl

Kouwenberg Infra, based in Schaijk, is a specialist in trenchless horizontal drilling techniques, offering all types of ground drilling services including open front, closed front and pipecracking.

With a range of extensive machinery Kouwenberg can be of service in various ground drilling and infrastructural activities. Kouwenberg is active in the energy transition by constructing and replacing electricity and heat networks.

Kouwenberg Infra
“After Triacta’s investment in Kouwenberg Infra, I was asked to start leading the business as Managing Director. Triacta gave me the space I needed to build up my team, they act as an excellent sounding board for strategic, organisational and financial matters and also actively assist me in carrying out add-on acquisitions. An extremely enjoyable and capable partner to work with!”
Jacob Verhoeve
General Director Kouwenberg Infra
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Brilliant Classics

Sector
Music

Investment type:
Owner-operator business, turnaround

StatusSold

Website
www.brilliantclassics.com

Brilliant Classics

Brilliant Classics is a classical music label with distribution in over 35 countries worldwide through both traditional and modern retail channels. The company is one of the leading global companies in the budget segment. With its extensive music catalogue Brilliant Classics services both the physical audio market as well as digital markets, in which it is globally leading. The company has its headquarters in Leeuwarden.

Following its acquisition by Triacta in 2010 from Foreign Media Group, which was in receivership, the organisation of Brilliant Classics – at that time partly integrated with FMG – was established on an independent footing and its commercial footprint was adapted, exiting loss-making countries and adding new markets. Furthermore, a digital strategy was developed and implemented. Brilliant Classics was sold to German listed company Edel AG in October 2012.

“Soon after the purchase of Brilliant Classics, Triacta asked me to become Managing Director. They have been of great assistance in making the business independent, meanwhile giving me the space I need for the day-to-day running of the company. Together, we determined the strategy which was then implemented with great success”
Jeroen van Riel
General Director Brilliant Classics
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Priogen

Sector
Energy

Type of investment:
partial sale by owner-operator, accelerated growth, provided growth capital

Status
in portfolio

Website
priogen.com

Priogen focusses on short- and medium-term power trading on the European energy markets. It furthermore offers services to owners of wind- and solar parks for sourcing and optimizing generation under management.

Priogen fuels complex pricing algorithms with big energy data and advanced weather forecasting. As a result, they are able to manage risks, maximize megawatt value, reduce CO2 emissions and stabilize the grid.

Priogen
Logo Triacta

Visser & Smit Hanab Microtunneling

Sector
Infrastructure

Type of investments:
Corporate carve-out, buy & build

Status
in portfolio

Website
www.vshanab.nl

Visser Smit Hanab

Visser & Smit Hanab (V&SH) Microtunneling is a specialist in trenchless horizontal drilling techniques, offering all types of ground drilling services including open and closed front. V&SH has been integrated into Kouwenberg Infra and currently operates under the Kouwenberg Infra brand name. This acquisition has created the leading company in Netherlands in open front and closed front drilling.

V&SH Microtunneling was a business unit of Visser & Smit Hanab (a VolkerWessels company), a specialist in pipelines and cable infrastructure.

“Triacta pro-actively approached VolkerWessels to acquire V&SH Microtunneling. By doing so they have enabled us to accelerate our growth strategy through buy & build. Triacta has unburdened us completely during the entire process and swiftly closed the transaction successfully.”
Jacob Verhoeve
General Director Kouwenberg Infra
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La Varenne

Sector
Food

Type of investment:
corporate carve-out; turnaround; buy & build

Status
in portfolio

Website
www.la-varenne.lu

La Varenne Restaurants is a chain of food-retail concepts in Luxembourg.

The company wants to provide a best-in-class food proposition at high-traffic retail locations.

La Varenne
“Without Triacta we would not have been able to become an independent, financially healthy and growing company. We wanted to become independent from our previous owners, Autogrill, in a controlled fashion, and Triacta was indispensable in that process. The organisation is rock solid and Triacta still supports us in non-routine matters such as acquisitions and opening new sites. They have also proven to be a strong sounding board for management.”
Josée Heij, advisor and former CEO
Eric Vermersch, CEO
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Stradus Aqua

Sector
Production

Type of investment:
Corporate carve-out, buy & build

Status
divested

Stradus Aqua is market leader in Belgium in the field of sewage pipes and inspection chambers. In addition, Stradus produces an extensive range of tailor-made and prefabricated concrete products.

Stradus Aqua
“Stradus Aqua had ceased to be a core business for CRH. Triacta is a shareholder with relevant experience in the Belgian market. They can really help us in our carve-out from CRH and in extending our leadership in the increasingly important drainage and water treatment market in Belgium. The sale of Stradus Aqua to Tubobel was a perfect next step to enable Stradus Aqua to join with Tubobel and become the unrivalled leader in the Belgian market”
Peter Beyens
General Director
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TBS

Sector
Production

Type of investment:
Corporate carve-out, buy & build

Status
in portfolio

Website
www.tbs.nl

TBS Soest is market leader in the Netherlands in the manufacture and sale of high-quality road and kerb gullies and manhole covers.

TBS Soest
“Triacta carried out extremely thorough market research in process leading to the transaction and was well-informed about the markets we operate in. Moreover, they have profound knowledge of production processes and organisational improvements. This knowledge was extremely useful when our business was split off from Ballast Nedam and subsequently during the merger of the business with SVA. I am very enthusiastic about our collaboration with them. They provide me with sufficient space to run the business and provide valuable support where required.”
Peter van Zwieten
General Director
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SVA

Sector
Production

Type of investment:
Corporate carve-out, buy & build

Status
in portfolio

Website
www.sva.group

Struyk Verwo Aqua is market leader in the Netherlands in industrial drains, and one of the leading suppliers of road and kerb gullies and manhole covers.

Struyk Verwo Aqua
“SVA was no longer part of CRH’s core activities. Although the carve-out of SVA was complex, we managed to successfully achieve this without any interruption to our business. Without Triacta’s knowledge and expertise, this would not have been possible. In addition, Triacta gave us perfect support during our integration with TBS and was an excellent discussion partner during the business planning process. Our collaboration was extremely constructive and valuable. It was also a great pleasure to work with them as people.”
Peter van Zwieten
General Director
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Max Kruitwagen

Associate

Max is medeverantwoordelijk voor het beoordelen en realiseren van nieuwe investeringsmogelijkheden en uitvoering van projecten binnen de portfolio ondernemingen.

Voorafgaand aan Triacta was Max Senior Associate bij ABN AMRO Corporate Finance, waar hij betrokken was bij diverse M&A processen, beursgangen en leveraged finance transacties voor Private Equity deelnemingen.

Max heeft een MSc in Financial Economics behaald aan de Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam.

Max woont samen in Amsterdam. Zijn hobby’s zijn tennis, skiën en zeilen.

Gerben Willems

Partner

Gerben Willems heeft meer dan 20 jaar ervaring in consulting, operationeel management en investeren.

Voordat hij in 2010 Triacta heeft opgericht, was hij investment manager bij H2 Equity Partners. Hij is tevens oprichter en is CEO geweest van Cycleon, een leidende Europese Reverse Logistics onderneming met activiteiten in meer dan 25 landen, die eind 2007 is overgenomen door een Amerikaans private equity fonds. Verder was Gerben consultant bij McKinsey & Company Benelux. Hij behaalde een MBA aan INSEAD in Fontainebleau en een MSc in Luchtvaart- en Ruimtevaarttechniek aan de Technische Universiteit Delft.

Gerben is getrouwd, heeft drie zonen en woont in Hilversum. Zijn hobby’s zijn tennis, moutainbiken en vliegen.