White & Case has advised Super Group Limited (Super Group) on its acquisition of the IN tIME group from funds advised by Equistone Partners Europe, in a deal that values the company at EUR 153.5 million. Equistone was advised by P+P Pollath + Partners. The transaction should complete in the autumn after approval by the central bank of South Africa.
Super Group is a transport logistics and mobility group listed on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange that provides end-to-end supply chain solutions, fleet management and dealership services. IN tIME is headquartered in Germany with branches across Germany, Sweden, Hungary, Romania, the Czech Republic, and Poland, and operates across a further 13 countries in Europe. It operates in the niche logistics sector of time-critical delivery services, predominantly servicing the automotive industry.
The acquisition expands Super Group's geographical footprint in Europe and gives it access to proprietary dispatching software developed by IN tIME. The acquisition will in part be funded by the proceeds of a rights offering in South Africa and in part by debt facilities with European banks.
Equistone took a majority stake in IN tIME following a secondary buyout in September 2011. Since then, IN tIME’s annual turnover has increased from EUR 105 million Euros with approximately 400 employees in 2010 to 140 million with approximately 550 employees in 2014.
A press release issued by Equistone quotes Managing Director Michael Bork as saying that: “Since acquiring IN tIME we have invested in positioning the business for future growth, for example by strengthening the organisational structure of the company, the expansion of the decentralised branch network, and through the acquisition of LTE Transport GmbH. By entering the express air cargo business, creating an internet sales platform and through a SME-client initiative we were able to further expand the strong market position of IN tIME and its product offering. We wish the Directors, Torsten Prelle, and Gerd Rottger, their management team, and the employees continued success in the future."
The White & Case team that advised Super Group was led by Partner Stefan Koch with the support of Local Partner Matthias Kiesewetter, Partner Tom Schorling, and Markus Althoff. The broader team included Partner Borries Ahrens (Hamburg), Local Partners Daniel Muller (Frankfurt), Hendrik Roger (Hamburg), and Jessica Hallermayer (Hamburg), and Associates Sven-Christoph Riepke (Hamburg), Seiran Sinjari (Stockholm), Malgorzata Mroczek (Warsaw), Petr Topka (Prague), Marc Schuba (Frankfurt) and Hugo Leite (Frankfurt).
