ABN AMRO Capital has bought Dutch textile services company Fortex from Industri Kapital and the company’s management for an undisclosed amount.
Sources close to the deal said the sale generated a 1.5x return for IK, one that the firm was satisfied with after one of Fortex’s plants burned down in 2002. The firm was in the middle of a restructuring of the business at the time, which involved closing down some of the plants. There was a fear at the firm that they may actually make a loss on the original investment.
Fortex will now be merged with Clean Lease Randstad, a Dutch textiles services company that ABN AMRO acquired in June 2004. The ABN AMRO LBO Fund took a 60% stake in the group.
IK 2000 Fund bought Fortex in March 2000 from the family shareholders, and embarked on a buy-and-build strategy, acquiring three Belgian companies and one Dutch business.