About the deal

Founded in 2007 by Yannick Morat, Ekosport was originally an online ski equipment online retailer. The expansion of the product range to every outdoor sports (summer and winter), the quick growth of the e-commerce channel in France and Europe (more than 15 countries, representing one third of the group’s revenues), and the development of the retail network (opening of 7 points of sale and acquisition of 2 Espace Montagne shops) have contributed to the strong growth of the group’s sales which reached c. €80m in 2021. Ekosport now has a team of 170 employees and is one of the leading European retailer with more than 25,000 items from 300 brands.

Yannick Morat and the management team were convinced that the time had come to join forces with a financial partner to support the growth project (sparring partner to structure the growth, manage build-up opportunities, support international development and propose a strategic exit after 4-5 years).

Capitalmind Investec was appointed to meet this objective: we designed a primary LBO and secured €20m of senior debt prior to the submission of binding offers from investors. Following discussions with interested funds, the management team ultimately chose the IDI team, with a minor co-investment from Garibaldi.

What we did

Capitalmind Investec has assisted the shareholders of Ekosport throughout the transaction: defining deal tactics, designing the equity story, acting as a sparring partners by preparing the shareholders for their primary transaction with a financial partner, drafting the marketing documentation in relation to the equity story and the growth project, approaching and discussing with the most relevant funds, securing the bank financing for the transaction, setting the right degree of competitive tension in order to maximize the terms of the transaction (valuation, timetable, governance), managing the process with the advisors and handling the negotiation phases.

“Alexandre and his team have been accompanying our strategic planning for several years now and they perfectly prepared us for the challenges of this primary LBO. Their valuable advice, their deep knowledge of our sector and the trust we established with each other, enabled us to approach in a serene way this key transaction for the development of our company.”  Yannick MORAT, CEO – Groupe Frasteya