Invest differently

Why?

Turning today’s SMEs into tomorrow’s leading mid-cap companies requires more than just capital: a strategy and operations-oriented partner.

How?

B & Capital combines the know-how of seasoned investors together with the worldwide network of sectoral experts of Roland Berger.

About us

Accelerator of growth and transformation of SMEs

B & Capital partners with promising SME managers and helps them unlock the potential for the next stage of growth and transformation. B & Capital specifically pulls on three different levers to meet their goals: add-on acquisitions, globalization, digitalization.

Our fund RB Capital France 1 has received € 217 million in commitments. We have the necessary means to back our investee companies throughout their development plans.

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Our DNA

Entrepreneurs backing entrepreneurs

Being ourselves entrepreneurs, we created B & Capital with the goal of helping ambitious entrepreneurs reach their targets in the long run.

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Active shareholders in support of management

We take our shareholder role seriously and aim to be true “sparring partners” with our company CEOs, all the while preserving their full autonomy as managers. This helps build and execute more robust growth strategies, especially in terms of bolt-on acquisitions.

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Roland Berger – a partner with valuable input on strategy and operations

Our partner Roland Berger is a leading European strategy consultancy. With 2,400 consultants in 50 offices across 34 countries, it has deep industry and functional expertise.

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Sustainable and responsible growth

We strongly believe value creation is in the long term underpinned by Environmental, Social, and Governance issues being embraced. B & Capital has been a signatory of the PRI since its inception.

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Team

Philippe Zurawski

Partner

Prior to founding B & Capital, Philippe was a Partner in the Mid-Cap Buyout & Growth Capital Team of Omnes Capital, which he joined in 2002.
He started his career at Arthur Andersen in 1995 as an auditor, then became Senior Consultant in the Corporate Restructuring Services department (acquisitions, sales, restructuring). In 2000, he joined the 3i Group.

During the 12-year period before founding B & Capital, Philippe led successful majority and minority transactions in various sectors, notably healthcare (Vivalto Santé), specialized industries (Sateco), business services (Cogepart) and distribution (Office Log, Exclusive Networks).

Philippe holds a Master of Science in Management and a postgraduate diploma in Finance and Tax Management from Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University.

Bertrand Tissot

Partner

Prior to founding B & Capital, Bertrand worked in the Crédit Agricole’s private equity unit, (today Omnes Capital), which he had joined in 1999, as a Partner in the Mid-Cap Buyout & Growth Capital Team.

He started his career in 1994 as an investment banker at Indosuez Bank. In 1995, he joined Unicrédit as Key Account Relationship Manager, before switching back to Crédit Agricole Indosuez (today CACIB) as a credit manager in the commitments department.

During his past tenures, Bertrand led successful investments in various sectors, notably business services (Legoupil Industrie, Groupe SVP, Armatis-LC, Capcom Groupe, Dispam), specialised industries (Souriau) and environment (Groupe ECT).

Bertrand is a qualified civil engineer from the Ecole des Mines of Saint-Etienne and holds a Bachelor degree in Economics.

Mikaël Schaller

Partner

Prior to founding B & Capital, Mikaël worked in the Mid-Cap Buyout & Growth Capital Team of Omnes Capital, which he joined in 2005.

Previously, he had held several positions in the LBO industry, particularly within the CIC leverage finance team.

During the 11-year period before joining B & Capital, Mikaël was involved  in successful majority and minority transactions, in various sectors: environment (Groupe ECT), specialized industries (Sateco), business services (Legoupil Industrie, Groupe SVP, Armatis-LC) and distribution (Exclusive Networks).

Mikaël graduated from Sciences Po Strasbourg and holds a postgraduate degree in Corporate Finance and Financial Engineering from Paris Dauphine University.

Nicolas Lozowski

Investment Director

Nicolas joined B & Capital in September 2019. Prior to joining the firm, Nicolas spent 4 years at Ciclad, a Private Equity firm specialized in Small Caps. He took part in investments in various sectors – Engineering, B2B Services, Telco, Retail.

Nicolas also has had a 4-year experience as a Consultant at OC&C Strategy Consultants where he worked on projects for clients in a wide array of industries.

Nicolas graduated from Ecole Centrale Paris.

Charles Gaudry

Investment Director

Charles joined B & Capital in September 2018 after a 1-year experience at Roland Berger as consultant. Charles was notably involved in strategic due diligence for Private Equity funds in various sectors such as distribution, specialised industries and financial services.

Prior to joining Roland Berger, Charles had been credit analyst during 3 ans at Neuflize OBC, specialising in SMEs.

Charles graduated from ESCP Europe.

Mélanie Baudin

Principal

Mélanie joined B & Capital in September 2022. Prior to joining the firm Mélanie spent 5 years at Safran as a Manager in the Merger and Acquisition department.

Mélanie also has a 5-year experience at EY as an auditor and as a Consultant in the Transaction Services department where she worked on projects for clients in a wide array of industries.

Mélanie graduated from EDHEC Business School

Myriam Zahraoui

Principal

Myriam joined B & Capital in April 2020 after spending 4 years at Lincoln International, an investment bank specializing in M&A Small-Mid Caps.

Myriam graduated from ESCP Europe.

Mathilde Beauquis

Associate

After several experiences in Private Equity at Financière Florentine (venture capital) and Alliance Entreprendre, Mathilde joined B & Capital in September 2018.

Mathilde graduated from Université Lumière Lyon 2 (Master degree in Business Valuation and Transmission).

Bernard Arock

Secretary General

Prior to founding B & Capital, Bernard was Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Amundi Private Equity Funds from 2007 to 2016. As such he was responsible for all Private Equity, Infrastructure and Private Debt Multi-management (funds of funds) activities.

Bernard started his career at Credit Lyonnais as a Budget Controller in 1989, before moving to Equity Capital Markets in 1992, where he was Director of the Origination and Deal Execution Department. In 2001, he founded the Financial Sponsor Group of Credit Lyonnais. He ran the entity, where he was also in charge of investments in European LBO funds, until 2005 and then became a Managing Partner of Kaldeus Finance, an independent advisor acting as a gatekeeper for French institutional investors dealing with their private equity commitments.

Bernard graduated from Ecole Centrale Paris (1987) and Sciences Po Paris (1988).

Our investments

NEDAP FRANCE

Nedap France is a leading value-added distributor and integrator of (i) security management systems and (ii) identification and traceability solutions for the retail industry and libraries.

STELIAU TECHNOLOGY

Steliau Technology is a value-added distributor of electronic components. One of Steliau Technology’s premier strengths is in its capacity to figure out its customers’ needs at a very early stage in their industrial project, working closely with their R&D department and leading to provide them with tailored solutions.

123 ELEC

123elec is a leading online distributor of electrical supplies for private individuals and businesses. 123elec’s products offer great value for money with over 3,000 products available from the best brands (Legrand, Hager, Siemens, Schneider, etc.) in stock at all times.

GALAED

Miidex Lighting is a French LED lighting distributor serving a customer base of professionals, including B2B distributors and installers. The company has over 2,600 products that provide excellent value for money and are available in next-day delivery. Miidex covers the needs of the residential, tertiary and industrial markets.

NEXTPOOL

NextPool designs, develops, and manufactures a wide range of custom-made pool equipment. NextPool mainly addresses the French market as a leader in covers, rollers, liners, water treatment and shading solutions. NextPool sells its goods through B2B channels exclusively. NextPool’s major customers are large pool contractors, specialized distributors, and independent pool makers.

SEAPORT ODLM

Seaport ODLM is a specialist in the creation, design, marketing and distribution of optical and solar frames positioned in the affordable luxury segment. With a solid track record of growth and successful integration of well-established brand licenses, the Group is today the independent French leader in the affordable luxury segment with four brands under exclusive and international license in eyewear: Façonnable, Paul & Joe , Carven and Ba&sh. It also has an exclusive distribution contract in many countries abroad for Moleskine and its own brand: Kosby. The Group distributes its frames through more than 4,000 points of sale in France.

BE-CLOUD

Be-Cloud is a value-added reseller and wholesaler of Microsoft cloud solutions for VSE / SME. Having established a strong partnership with Microsoft, the company offers a complete set of solutions comprising the sale of Microsoft licenses (Office 365, Azure, Dynamics) as a monthly subscription, as well as a service pack, including implementation, support, maintenance, or training. This offer creates a highly competitive edge and enables customers to outsource part of their IT maintenance to Be-Cloud. At the end of 2019, Microsoft granted Be-Cloud a wholesaler status for the EMEA region. Since then, the company has also been able to market its offerings through a network of partner integrators.

IKA

Founded in 2010 by Alexandre Reina and Etienne Rochery and based in France, IKA specializes in software solutions addressing the need for digital transformation of public finances management, for French-speaking African countries. Over the last decade, the company has built a strong and visible expertise. It offers scalable, secure, and customizable software solutions that enable its clients to modernize their public finances management and adopt the best international standards.IKA offering breaks through five areas of expertise: taxes, budget management, public procurement, social security, and customs

NEOPTIM CONSULTING

Neoptim Consulting mainly offers tax payments and social contributions optimization advisory for public and para-public entities in France. These entities are, for instance, local authorities, public retirement homes, public hospitals and associations. The company employs circa fifty people and has offices in Paris, Lyon and Montpellier.
The firm is regarded for its proactive commercial approach as well as nimble and demanding corporate culture. Its offering is structured around four main business units: social contributions, taxation, research tax credit, accidentology and occupational illnesses, activating more than thirty optimization levers.
Innovation oriented, the company permanently scrutinizes regulatory changes and thus enriches its offering with new optimization levers.

SSM SPARTNER

SSM Spartners is a provider of services to various sports. It addresses the needs of a wide range of clients, from professional sports teams (motorsports, clubs), federations, leagues to infrastructure owners and media companies with a broad multiservice offering.

SSM offers 4 different services: coordinating and consulting for sporting events, travel management for professional teams, organizing of training camps, and brand signage and digital display, with a recent expansion into LED screens.

Working with a broad network of partners, the Group’s value proposition is centered around its extensive experience and ability to meet its customers’ needs through bespoke services.

HUBENCY

Hubency is one of the leaders among alternative recycling and waste management operators in France positioned as a unique interface between waste producers and recycling professionals. The company stands in a unique position in its market offering waste management, tracking and recovery solutions for multi-site and multi-waste clients, thus bringing real added value to a widespreading and stable customer base through 2 to 3 year contracts and to recyclers. Hubency also stands out through (i) its extensive network of more than 1,500 transport and outlet providers, enabling it to cover the entire territory, and (ii) its commercial agility based in particular on its Onesty digital platform.

EVA Group

Eva Group specializes in IT and cybersecurity consulting. The firm is active in two businesses: cloud infrastructures (consulting in IT transformation, deployment, integration, security and operational management), cybersecurity (security governance, compliance management, intrusive audits/tests, operational security, training).

B & Capital took a majority stake in EVA Group in December 2018, then sold its stake to Sopra Steria in December 2021, after supporting the growth of EVA Group with its managers.


Deveryware

Deveryware is a leading player in real-time geolocation of people and goods, which develops technological advanced tools for security and defense professionals, public authorities and companies in France and abroad.

B & Capital backed the development of Deveryware by taking a minority stake in February 2019. The majority shareholders and B & Capital brought Deveryware to ChapsVision in October 2022, contributing to the creation of a leading player in cyberdefense.

HR Team

HR Team is a digital service provider which addresses 3 segments: development (redesign of complex web sites, application code and mobile), consulting (project management, digital transformation), infrastructures (cloud, cybersecurity).

B & Capital took a majority stake in HR Team in February 2019 and assisted the founding managers in their growth policy in France and Europe. B & Capital and the managers sold their stakes to Scalian in September 2022, with a view to forming a leading French group in its businesses.

 

What our portfolio companies say about B & Capital

Jean-Victor Garnier

CEO EVA Group

We were looking for a financial partner which could also help us set the Group up to reach €50m in sales in the short to medium term. Thanks to its innovative partnership with Roland Berger, B & Capital combines financial firepower together with the expertise of a strategy consulting firm.

Stéphane Jouannaud

Charmain Steliau Technology

Looking back, we are satisfied to have selected B & Capital as our partner to be at our side throughout this new stage of our company’s development. Our relationship is built on trust. We share the same strategic vision and have frequent and fruitful discussions.

Jacques Salognon

Chairman Deveryware

B & Capital conducted thorough due diligence of our firm, made a complete review of its strategy and was eventually able to understand our project and our needs. For Deveryware, B & Capital is more than just a new shareholder: it is a powerful springboard for our development.

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Contact us

14-16 rue des Capucines 75002 Paris

Tél. : +33(0)1 83 81 97 62