Ironbridge has a very clearly defined and well established investment advisory strategy, supported by industry expertise and proven access to proprietary deal flow.
Ironbridge's investment advisory strategy focuses on investing in businesses that are or have the potential to be market leaders, can demonstrate the ability to generate significant organic and/or acquisition led growth, and where Ironbridge is able to identify the existence of multiple exit options.
Ironbridge has a sector specific focus which is directed principally within the services segment of the Australasian economies, which contributes approximately 70% to the GDP of both Australia and New Zealand.
Ironbridge will generally facilitate equity investments of $75 million to $200 million in medium and large companies in Australasia.
Key Investment Considerations
- Industry profile
Ironbridge looks for opportunities where economic, social or demographic factors support growth within a market sector over the lifetime of an investment.
- Attractive businesses to potential purchasers
Ironbridge seeks to identify businesses that are, or can become a leader in a particular segment of the market, with the necessary resources to establish brand value, economies of scale and barriers to entry.
- Growth potential
Ironbridge targets businesses with the potential for strong and sustained growth in revenue and profitability and/or where opportunities exist to grow the business through acquisitions. Ironbridge will focus on businesses which either already have recurring revenue streams or can build them and use leverage to enhance returns without impeding strategic initiatives.
- Enhancement at exit
Ironbridge seeks opportunities for exit multiple expansion as a result of enhancing profitability, by creating greater critical mass in the business through investment to grow capacity and to improve returns, and by strengthening management.
- Active partnerships with management
Ironbridge plays an active role in all aspects of investee company development, including the setting of strategic direction and operational goals and the close monitoring of performance.
Proprietary Deal Sourcing
The Managing Partners of Ironbridge are well established and highly regarded in the Australasian private equity market. The strong track record of funds managed & advised by Ironbridge generates a significant level of proprietary deal flow, where Ironbridge originates transactions or where there is no formal sale process available to other Australian or regional private equity managers.
Ironbridge takes a proactive approach to deal generation. Potential investment targets are selected using desk based research and an extensive network of industry contacts and advisors, which is supplemented by the Operational Partners Programme.
Ironbridge's successful program of identifying potential targets and monitoring potential target companies enables them to obtain a deeper understanding and ultimately to create close relationships with management teams.
This three pronged approach enables the Ironbridge team to secure access to a high proportion of proprietary investment opportunities. In other transactions, where a competitive process is initiated, Ironbridge is able to exploit its early contact with management to rapidly secure an exclusive position.
"Buy and Build" Deals
Ironbridge believes that there are a number of sectors of the Australasian economy where there is an opportunity for industry consolidation. In some cases this is because the typical driver of this strategy in Europe and the USA is not present in a particular sector. In others, it reflects the fact that the geographic location and population size of Australia means that it has not been an early focus of global or regional expansion by international groups.
The Ironbridge Team has worked on a number of "buy and build" strategies, developing a skill set that the team believes to be unique in the Australian mid cap MBO market and which offers significant potential as an alternative route to building attractive and substantial businesses.
