Scaleup programmes
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Livingbridge [Annual Review 2020]
Finance and Risk Capital
Impact for scaleups
22
Companies backed
12%
Follow-on investments
64%
Investments outside of London
13
Growth-stage investments
Livingbridge is a private equity firm that has been investing in four sectors – healthcare and education, services, consumer and TMT – for more than 20 years, making more than 100 investments.
It typically makes investments between £5m to £100m, taking a flexible approach – it will provide growth capital, as well as funding management buy-outs and secondary buy-outs and replacement capital deals. It invests in businesses with an enterprise value up to £50m through its Enterprise Fund, and in those with an enterprise value up to £200m through its Mid Market Fund. The average size of its investment round into UK companies since 2013 is £9.61m, and it will take stakes ranging from five to 80%. Scaleups in its portfolio include Southern Communications, Nigel Frank International, Happy Days Nurseries, Optomany and Carousel Logistics.
The firm has offices in London, Birmingham and Manchester and an Australian office in Melbourne to make primary investments in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. It has an office in Boston to support expansion and M&A in the US.
To support the growth strategies of its portfolio companies, Livingbridge has developed its “growth accelerators,” which it describes as “core value creation capabilities designed to unlock a business’s potential.” Its in-house growth acceleration team is made up of market experts principally covering international growth, corporate development, customer acquisition and retention, talent and technology. Its managing partner, Wol Kolade, is a founder of The 10,000 Black Interns programme, which will offer paid work experience across a wide range of sectors, providing training and development opportunities and creating a sustainable cycle of mentorship and sponsorship for the Black community.
