IK PARTNERS takes majority stake in Forthglade

IK Investment Partners has completed the acquisition of an 80% majority stake in British natural pet food producer Forthglade Foods Limited. The deal valuing the business at LOGIN. Deployed through the €550m IK Small Cap II Fund, the transaction represents the fund's tenth platform investment and the maiden deal executed by the sponsor's newly established UK team. Joint managing directors Gerard Lovell and Chris Brooking are reinvesting alongside the incoming private equity investor to retain an equity stake and continue driving commercial expansion. The transaction provides a full exit for Piper Private Equity, which originally backed the company with a £6m equity ticket in September 2015 following a management buyout executed by the leadership team in 2011. The buyout financing is structured with a unitranche debt facility provided by Tikehau Capital, representing its inaugural sponsor-backed direct lending transaction in the UK. At the time of the transaction, Forthglade generates over GBP22M in revenue for the fiscal year ending September 2020 and employs more than 130 people, having achieved branded sales growth exceeding 30% per annum over the trailing three-year period. The business recently expanded its manufacturing footprint with a modern production facility in Devon designed to triple production capacity. The post-deal value creation plan centers on accelerating brand awareness, scaling domestic and international distribution channels, enhancing digital direct-to-consumer capabilities, and broadening the product offering across cold-pressed natural dry food and hand-baked treats.

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