Doughty Hanson & Co is a British
private equity
In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a t ...
fund manager focused on
leveraged buyout
A leveraged buyout (LBO) is one company's acquisition of another company using a significant amount of borrowed money (leverage) to meet the cost of acquisition. The assets of the company being acquired are often used as collateral for the loan ...
and
recapitalization
Recapitalization is a type of corporate reorganization involving substantial change in a company's capital structure. Recapitalization may be motivated by a number of reasons. Usually, the large part of equity is replaced with debt or vice versa. ...
transactions primarily of upper
middle-market companies Authorities provide differing definitions of the middle-market or mid-market companies. While some authorities look to revenue generated by companies to define the middle market, other sources regard either asset size or number of employees as a be ...
in Europe. The firm also invests opportunistically in European
real estate
Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...
and provides early-stage
venture capital
Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to start-up company, startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth poten ...
to technology companies.
Doughty Hanson is headquartered in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and has offices in
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
,
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
,
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
,
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
,
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
and
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
.
The firm which was founded in 1985 by
Nigel Doughty
Nigel Edward Doughty (10 June 1957 – 4 February 2012) was a British investor and football club owner, who was co-chairman and co-founder of Doughty Hanson & Co, a European private equity firm based in London.
Doughty was born in Newark, Notti ...
, Chris Wallis and Richard Hanson is one of the oldest European buyout
private equity firm
A private equity firm is an investment management company that provides financial backing and makes investments in the private equity of startup or operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including lev ...
s. Since its inception, the firm has invested over €23 billion across more than 100 investments.
On 4 February 2012, Doughty was found dead in the gymnasium of his
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
home.
Then, on 10 August 2015, the firm announced the shut down of most of its European offices after abandoning its next round of funding. The offices closed in 2015 included
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
,
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
,
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
and
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
. In May 2017, the firm re-branded itself to DH Private Equity Partners.
History
Doughty Hanson traces its history back to 1985 when Nigel Doughty and Richard (Dick) Hanson started working together on European buyout investments within
Standard Chartered Bank as founding members of its management buyout unit. In 1990 they established CWB Partners, a private equity joint venture between Standard Chartered and
Westdeutsche Landesbank.
Doughty Hanson was established as an independent firm in 1995. In 1999, the group expanded its activities with the formation of a
real estate
Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...
investment team and the following year it established a team to focus on early-stage technology
venture capital
Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to start-up company, startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth poten ...
investing.
Investment strategy
Doughty Hanson's three product areas operate as separate fund families:
* Private Equity – Doughty Hanson's buyout team focuses on majority ownership and control of market-leading businesses at the upper end of the European
middle-market with
enterprise value Enterprise value (EV), total enterprise value (TEV), or firm value (FV) is an economic measure reflecting the market value of a business (i.e. as distinct from market price). It is a sum of claims by all claimants: creditors (secured and unsecured) ...
s between €250m and €1bn.
* Real Estate – Doughty Hanson is an opportunistic investor and developer active in the office, retail and logistics sectors. Investments range from the acquisition of existing single assets and portfolios to more complex developments and urban regeneration projects.
* Technology Ventures – The Doughty Hanson Technology Ventures team targets technology companies within three industry sectors: internet software, mobile communications and clean energy technology.
Responsible Investing
In June 2007 Doughty Hanson became one of the first private equity signatories to the
United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI)
Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI or PRI) is a United Nations-supported international network of financial institutions working together to implement its six aspirational principles, often referenced as "the Principles". Its goal is to u ...
, which provide a framework for incorporating
environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues into investment decision-making and ownership practices. A year later the firm became the first private equity manager in Europe to hire a dedicated Head of Sustainability to focus on the implementation, management and monitoring of ESG issues across the Doughty Hanson portfolio.
Investment funds
Since inception, Doughty Hanson has raised over €8 billion across its five
private equity funds.
The following is a summary of the investment funds raised to date by Doughty Hanson:
In 2007, Doughty completed fundraising for its fifth private equity fund with €3.0 billion of investor commitments. This came just two years after the firm had wrapped up a difficult fundraising for Doughty Hanson IV, in 2004 which had only generated €1.6 billion of investor commitments compared with the firm's original €3.0 billion target. Doughty Hanson III, raised in 1997 had been a €2.7 billion investment fund.
Portfolio companies
The following investments are representative of Doughty Hanson's portfolio of private companies:
*
The RHM Group
RHM plc, formerly Rank Hovis McDougall, was a United Kingdom food business. The company owned numerous brands, particularly for flour, where its core business started, and for consumer food products. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange ...
- RHM was among the leading food manufacturing groups in the UK. Founded in 1899, RHM was acquired by Doughty Hanson in 2000 and listed on the London Stock Exchange in July 2005.
*
Priory Healthcare is the largest independent provider of mental health and rehabilitation services in the UK. Priory was acquired by Doughty Hanson in 2002 and was sold in July 2005 in a transaction valued at £875m.
*
Saft Groupe S.A. - Saft is a manufacturer of high-end batteries for a wide range of niche applications, including aviation, railway, industrial stand-by, defence, and emergency lighting. Saft was acquired by Doughty Hanson in 2004 and the company was listed on Euronext, Paris, in June 2005.
* Moeller - Moeller is one of the largest globally active manufacturers of low-voltage electrical distribution and automation components for industrial, commercial, and residential applications. Moeller was acquired by Doughty Hanson in 2005 and sold in April 2008 in a transaction valued at €1.65 billion.
Other notable investments include:
TMF Group
TMF Group is a multinational professional services firm headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The independent group provides accounting, tax, HR and payroll services to businesses operating on an international scale. TMF Group, with 125 offic ...
,
TV3 (Ireland)
Virgin Media One, also called Virgin One, is an Irish free-to-air television channel owned by Virgin Media Ireland (part of Liberty Global), operated through its subsidiary Virgin Media Television. The channel was known until 30 August 20 ...
,
Tumi Inc.
Tumi Holdings, Inc., is a manufacturer of high-end suitcases and bags for travel based in Edison, New Jersey. Founded in 1975 by Charlie Clifford after a stint in the Peace Corps in Peru, the company is named after a Peruvian tumi ceremonial kni ...
,
Dunlop Standard Aerospace Group
Dunlop Standard Aerospace Group Ltd. was formed in 1998 from the assets of BTR Aerospace Group when they were purchased by Doughty Hanson & Co.
In 2004 the company was sold and split into two. The Carlyle Group, a private equity firm, acquire ...
,
Caudwell Group
John David Caudwell (born 7 October 1952) is a British billionaire businessman who founded the now defunct mobile phone retailer Phones 4u. He also invests in fashion, real estate and other industries, and chairs Caudwell Children, a children's ...
, and
LM Wind Power
LM Wind Power (formerly LM Glasfiber) is a Danish multinational wind turbine rotor blades manufacturer and is a subsidiary of General Electric.
LM Wind Power has manufactured more than 175,000 blades since 1975.
History
LM Wind Power was founde ...
.
Notable alumni
*
James Max
James Max (born 20 May 1970) is a journalist, TV and radio presenter specialising in current affairs and business issues. He presents the Early Breakfast Show from 5am to 6.30am on TalkTV. He is a regular contributor to The Talk on TalkTV, The J ...
- journalist and radio presenter specialising in business issues and was a semifinalist on the first series of the British version of ''
The Apprentice
''The Apprentice'' is a reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States.
Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with various professional backg ...
'' television programme.
*
Mark Florman
Carl Alan Mark Florman (born 2 November 1958) is a British businessman and entrepreneur. He is a co-founder and former CEO of the merchant banking group, Maizels, Westerberg & Co. and Time Partners Limited. Florman led the review of governance f ...
- founder and former CEO of
Maizels, Westerberg & Co.
References
External links
Doughty Hanson & Co(company website)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Doughty Hanson and Co
Private equity firms of the United Kingdom
Financial services companies established in 1985
British companies established in 1985