Search Funds: An Alternative Path to Entrepreneurship
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An alternative path to Entrepreneurship:
Buying a company, rather than starting one
Following the success of the Search Fund event by HEC Alumni Entrepreneur Hub in Paris, HEC UK Alumni is happy to invite alumni to learn more about this model: An alternative to entrepreneurship.
Starting a company has a 90% failure rate. For many people looking to leave a corporate job, entering entrepreneurship can be an uncomfortable idea. Or they may not have the funds required to start a business and live.
A different approach can be to buy an existing company instead: Search funds.
An entrepreneurial minded person can search for acquisition targets, analyse the opportunities, and manage the company post acquisition.
In this event, a panel of experts will explore the concept of entrepreneurship through acquisition, with a particular focus on “search funds” and micro private equity:
Tuesday 12th January 2021
4pm GMT / 5pm CET
Online
Panel members are:
Investor 1 - Simon Webster
Simon Webster was the 1st person outside of the USA to raise a search fund. He acquired a business and between 1995 and 2005 he grew it from £3.5m to £30m sales and EBITDA from £0.4m to £2.4m. He successfully sold the business in December 2005 and stayed on as CEO until 2007.
Simon is an alumnus of the London Business School and has various business interests. He is an investor and mentor of search fund entrepreneurs and he has invested in over 50 search funds.
Investor 2 - Thomas Duteil (H.07)
Thomas Duteil is the Founding Partner of Trajan Capital, a private equity group specialising in search funds. The group aims to build a pool of a dozen managers who are candidates for the takeover of companies in the French SME sector. Trajan has raised €75 M for its first fund so far and closed already on 2 acquisitions.
Thomas graduated from HEC Paris in 2007.
Trajan Capital was recognised as the Best French Small & Lower Mid-Market LBO Fund at the 2019 Private Equity Exchange & Awards. Prior to that, he was an Investment Director at Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners
Searcher / Operator 1 – Nat Macauley
Nat Macauley is the Managing Director and business owner of JCM Contracts, a firm which designs and builds custom fine joinery and commercial washroom cubicles. Her investment vehicle, Pelorus Group, is seeking to invest in businesses in the UK, Ireland and Canada with a sustained annual turnover of £500K – £5M.
Searcher 2 – Chin Tan (MBA.17)
Since August 2020, Chin Tan is a current searcher for an existing company to acquire in his local region in Bristol, UK. He graduated from the MBA programme at HEC in 2017 and started his entrepreneurship journey by buying into an education franchise offering online and in-home tutoring. His previous background in manufacturing and engineering, so he will focus on finding acquisition targets initially in these two sectors.
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We reserve the right to change details or panelists closer to the date if unexpected circumstances occur.
Please contact HEC UK Alumni Relations Manager alyssa.dominioni@hecalumni.fr for feedback or help to register to events.
