Wimbledon, UK — Phoenix Equity Partners is investing in Nineteen Group, which organizes trade shows for the security, fire, emergency services, health and safety, facilities management and maintenance engineering industries. This is Phoenix Equity Partners’ second round of funding.
Phoenix partnered with Nineteen CEO and founder Peter Jones in 2018 to develop an acquisition-led organic growth strategy. Since then, Nineteen has grown exponentially.
“We are extremely proud to be working with Phoenix to further expand our business. With Phoenix’s support, the Nineteen team has ambitious plans to drive the next phase of growth through organic build-outs, the launch of new exhibitions and further acquisitions, ” said Peter Jones, CEO of Nineteen.
The new capital injection will enable Nineteen to move into a larger continuation fund led by two of the world’s leading investors, Kline Hill Partners and Ares Management.
“Phoenix Equity Partners have been steadfast in supporting us during COVID. We have seven shows and 28 people on board. Since inception, we have grown to 174 talented people and 21 shows across three continents,” said Jones.
In its first round of financing, Nineteen Group grew an average of 30% organically year-on-year, launched nine shows, acquired seven businesses, established its headquarters in Wimbledon and added offices in Hong Kong and Singapore. “We love Phoenix. They believe in face-to-face communication, they believe in culture first and, frankly, they’re a great partner,” Jones said. “Our vision is to be the best trade show organizer and media business in the world through a strong culture.”
Private equity firms bullish on events
There is a growing trend of private equity capital pouring into the exhibition industry. At Trade Show Executive’s Gold 100 Awards and Summit, JEGI Managing Director Kathleen Thomas took the stage to discuss the trade show industry landscape.
“People don’t buy events and companies to destroy them. They buy them to grow. We talk about this all the time; they spend millions, millions, hundreds of millions of dollars on companies because they want the value of those companies to be It’s two or three times that, so the people who are driving these businesses are critical, they don’t want to get rid of these people, change their roles or upset them, or do whatever they need to do. things to support them in accelerating that growth,” she said.
related. Annual TSE Gold 100 Awards Ceremony and Summit spotlights the greatest and brightest
Industry experts agree that the industry is attractive to private equity in terms of finances and growth.
Some recent deals include private equity firm Providence Equity Partners acquiring British events organizer Hyve.
Another deal was UK-based Informa’s acquisition of Tarsus Group, a deal reportedly worth $940 million.
Most recently, Shamrock Capital replaced MSouth Equity Partners as a new investor in Nth Degree, a trade show planning, workforce management and events company. MSouth invested in the company in 2019. In those five years, Nth Degree’s business more than tripled in size.
In an interesting twist, the Event Venture Group (EVG) was formed to drive success in early-stage event ventures across all event categories. EVG provides access to a network of event industry leaders who provide valuable advice, connections and resources.
Contact Peter Jones: info@nineteengroup.com
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