Astorg sells RLD

Astorg Partners has made a 2.3x return on the sale of Régie Linge Developpement (RLD), a French linen rental company, to Sagard Private Equity Partners in a secondary buyout for a reported €150m.

Astorg II invested in the Nantes-based business in April 1999 and embarked on a buy-and-build strategy, which has seen RLD acquire 10 companies. It recorded an EBITDA of €1m in 1999 and in 2005 saw this rise to €13.4m, with the 2006 figure predicted to reach €15m.