Déco S.p.A., a leading Italian company in indoor and outdoor surface coverings, has entered into a strategic/financial partnership for growth with Auctus Capital Partners, a German private equity operator with offices in Munich and Milan.
Founded in 2010 in Bergamo, Italy, by Eugenio Lorenzo Caselli, Mattia Bambi and Paolo Damiani, three friends, at the time not yet 30 years old, united by their passion for Italian design, digital communication and innovation, Déco has established itself in the last decade as a leading player in its sector thanks to its attention to design, its listening to the market and constant focus on innovation, its high brand perception and the very high standard of the products offered.
The Company boasts a specialization and a range of collections that are unique in the Italian panorama of outdoor coverings (Ultrashield, Décowood, Firewall, Panorama) and outdoor furniture (Terraforma), combined with a wide range of revolutionary products dedicated to indoor flooring (Clap!) and wall decoration (Twix and Moove), all through an approach that is increasingly digital and highly innovative even for the European market. Déco is the benchmark for its sector, a partner for the professional and a well-known brand that has been synonymous with design and innovation for more than a decade.
With a turnover in the range of 35 million euros, the company operates in both the residential and public and contract markets and is present in more than 1,500 specialized retailers with distribution in more than 15 European and non-European countries.
“We are very pleased,” commented the three founding partners, “to have concluded the transaction with Auctus Capital Partners. Déco is in an ideal position to meet the challenges of its target markets, leveraging the robust skills acquired in recent years and the friendship that binds the three founding partners, which is one of the secrets of Déco’s development over the last decade. The entry of Auctus will facilitate our penetration into new markets and access to excellence complementary to our own, with adequate means for the ambitious goals we have set for ourselves.”
Nicolas Himmelmann, Managing Partner of Auctus Capital Partners, added that “We are proud to have entered into a strategic partnership with Déco and its three founders Eugenio Lorenzo Caselli, Mattia Bambi and Paolo Damiani, with the aim of exploiting market growth opportunities and supporting the further development of the company both on an organic basis and through targeted acquisitions so that Déco can become an exemplary case of successful innovation Made In Italy in the European design scene.”
illimity SGR through illimity Selective Credit, a debt fund dedicated to performing Italian SMEs, organized and financed the acquisition. illimity Bank S.p.A. participated in the financing as a co-financier.
The founding partners were assisted by Ethica Group, which acted as M&A advisor, with a team composed of Giorgio Carere, Roberto Ture and Guglielmo Spotorno; Legance for legal aspects, with Giacomo Gitti, Stefano Bandini, Antonio Garramone and Leonardo Batini; and CB Partners of Bologna for tax issues with a team composed of Fabrizio Bianchimani, Giuseppe Di Rocco and Vittorio Rallo.
The transaction was led for AUCTUS Capital Partners by a team composed of Nicolas Himmelmann, Marco Bortot, Francesco Novarese, Leon Koehl, and Samuele Leuzzi, assisted by Roedl & Partner for accounting aspects and by the Pedersoli firm for legal and tax aspects with a team composed for corporate profiles by Edoardo Pedersoli together with Matteo Pietrogrande, Alessandro Nanni, and Gioele Rossi, as well as Consuelo Citterio and Daria Davoli for financing profiles and Andrea de Mozzi for tax aspects together with Daniela Caporicci and Vincenzo De Angelis.
The transaction was financed by a syndicate composed of illimity Bank and illimity Selective Credit (a debt fund managed by illimity SGR S.p.A.) assisted by Shearman & Sterling with a team coordinated by Pasquale Bifulco supported by Alessandro Ciarmiello.
Ethica Group’s Debt Advisory team, consisting of Alessandro Corina and Sandro Ravera Chion, acted as debt structuring advisor.
