Sparring Capital announces that Abenex and Tikehau Capital have acquired a stake in Propriétés Privées to support the Group’s management through the next phase of its development. Sparring is taking part in this fundraising round along with one of its historical LPs, MACSF, which has also invested.
Sparring Capital acquired the company from its founder in May 2016 as part of a management buy-in led by Michel Le Bras, who became its Chairman, and Christine Cadrot, Head of Corporate Development. At the time, Propriétés Privées had just under 500 agents and generated revenue of €10M. Founded in 2006, Propriétés Privées is positioned as a pioneer and the fifth-largest operator on its market of real estate services, an industry showing 15% to 20% growth per year, by capturing market share from physical real estate agencies. With an outstanding performance, a solid reputation, an excellent brand image and a highly professional organisation – the only network approved by the Fédération Nationale de l’Immobilier (FNAIM), the French National Real Estate Federation, and with an in-house sales agreement drafting service – Propriétés Privées benefited from solid fundamentals to navigate favourable industry tailwinds and thus accelerate its growth, participate in the industry consolidation and develop into a global player in paperless real estate services.
Driven by its fresh management team and actively supported by Sparring Capital, the Group increased its network of agents seven-fold within five years. Its revenue is expected to exceed €100 million in 2022. Thanks to the talent of its management and the commitment of its employees, Propriétés Privées is the fastest growing (CAGR of over 40% since 2016) and most pre-eminent player in terms of innovation and breadth of offering in the online real estate space. Over the holding period, Propriétés Privées has become the third-largest player in the French market, acquired two complementary networks (Immoréseau and Rezoximmo), two real estate brokers (Synerfim, Positive Finance), penetrated the new-build, corporate and retail real estate segments, and developed a fully-digital rental management solution.
Sparring is very proud to have been able to support the Group and its teams in this tremendous adventure of growth and transformation. Propriétés Privées, which grew and restructured substantially over the holding period, is well positioned to benefit from the significant growth potential of the online real estate market. The company is currently leading efforts to strengthen the technological platform, and projects are well under way that will soon enable network agents to offer their clients highly differentiated services, while opportunities for external growth and international expansion are under review, all within a favourable market context for the network business model.
Michel Le Bras, Chairman of Oryx Group, stated:
“Sparring has been with us from day one, showing respect for our endeavours and uniting with us towards a common goal. Six years ago, after carefully analysing the market and the company, Denis Catz put his trust in me at the time of the purchase. Sparring Capital is the ideal partner to help a small company grow into an industry leader. We spent six years filled with positive interactions, constructive dialogue, a shared vision with a partner who allowed me, as a manager, to hone my skills in operational and financial strategy.”
Denis Catz, Partner at Sparring Capital added:
“We are pleased and proud to have had the opportunity to guide and support the Group and its management team since 2016. We were confident in the growth outlook of the online real estate services industry, the company’s strengths and the talent of the top management who took over. Propriétés Privées enjoyed exceptional growth, and this journey, alongside Michel Le Bras and Christine Cadrot, was also a wonderful human experience.”
Key players:
Sparring Capital (Denis Catz, Tancrède Colas, Justine Roze)
Management (Michel Le Bras, Christine Cadrot)
Sell-side M&A Adviser:
Alantra (Franck Noat, David Kieffer)
Vendors’ Financial Support:
Adventus Partners (Christophe Barraud)
Financial Vendor Due Diligence:
KPMG (Jack Rupchandani, Meryem Moumma)
Strategic Vendor Due Diligence:
Eleven (Ambroise Huret, Christopher Rischard)
Legal Vendor Due Diligence:
HPML (Thomas Hermetet, Aurélie Bonsch)