6
Industrial partners
In 2014, Avincis, the world’s largest mission-critical aerial
services operator, struck a long-term partnership with UK
engineering support service leader Babcock International.
The two companies initially started collaborating on bidding for
new contracts, which evolved into a proposed partial acquisition
by Babcock of Avincis. Ultimately, all parties agreed that the
best way to crystallize the synergies of the two businesses was
by Babcock taking full ownership of Avincis.
In March, the sale of Avincis was therefore completed, valuing
the company at
€
2 billion. Under Investindustrial’s ownership
Avincis underwent a major transformation and with these
positive developments finely rooted in the business, the
company will surely continue to thrive under the leadership of
its new corporate owner.
In November 2014, the Chinese telecoms equipment maker
ZTE opened its Southern European headquarters in the
Basque Country as part of a ten-year strategic agreement with
Euskaltel. ZTE will work with Euskaltel to guarantee its network
quality, upgrade its technologies, and extend its services.
The agreement comes amid a wave of inbound interest in quality
European companies. Investindustrial is well placed to identify,
capture and develop these strategic opportunities as a direct
result of the investment made in its Shanghai office and team.
Brand partners
In March 2014 PortAventura, Europe’s second largest destination
resort, reached a licensing agreement with Ferrari, the iconic
Italian sports car maker. PortAventura will establish Ferrari
Land, a new park and hotel dedicated to the theme of Ferrari
and located within the PortAventura destination resort. The
new branded site will be the sole Ferrari theme park in Europe
and envisages a total investment of more than
€
100 million.
Expected to open at the end of 2016, Ferrari Land is being
built on a total surface area of 75,000 square meters and it
is expected to improve PortAventura’s position as a leading
European destination resort. After the opening of Cirque du
Soleil at PortAventura in July 2014, which was well received
by visitors, industry and media, PortAventura reached a five
year agreement with the acrobatic production group and
stands to benefit from Cirque du Soleil shows in Spain over the
summer months. These powerful commercial partnerships are
significantly increasing PortAventura’s brand awareness in the
premium tourism segment worldwide.
Deep and interlinked relationships developed across many cycles
are hard to replicate. Leveraging these relationships is at the
heart of Investindustrial’s way of doing business. For example,
under Investindustrial’s ownership, in 2014 Perfume Holdings
was able to renew the Ferrari fragrance license, the company’s
main asset, to December 2023. The renewal was supported by
the ongoing dialogue Investindustrial had entered around the
development of Ferrari Land at PortAventura, showcasing the
synergies between Investindustrial’s portfolio companies.
Capital partners
Throughout 2014, Investindustrial’s relationship with KKR
developed well following the agreement that was announced
in December 2013 regarding the sale of a 49.9% shareholding
of PortAventura. KKR’s entry brought complimentary capital
and resources to facilitate further growth and to execute the
next exciting and transformational phase of the PortAventura
development. The capital partnership with KKR was initially
developed through the Avincis transaction and highlights the
ability of Investindustrial to source and execute transactions
that command attention from other institutions within the
investment community, and to nurture these valuable capital
partnerships to maximise returns and the positive impact on the
underlying companies.
Investindustrial has always considered its long-term investor
base a key capital partner and routinely seeks to offer significant
co-investment opportunities alongside fund investments. Since
the start of 2014, Investindustrial’s co-investment partners have
invested more than
€
250 million in new investments.
20
14
Strategic Commentary
//
ANNUAL REVIEW & SUSTAINABILITY REPORT
Investindustrial’s long-standing presence as a preferred mid-market company
owner in Italy, Spain, and opportunistically across Europe is built around our
philosophy of setting up the investee companies for long-term success
