ECI Partners portfolio company Fourth Hospitality, a leading software supplier to some of the biggest names in the pub, hotel and restaurant markets, has appointed Stuart Layzell as Chief Financial Officer as it gears up to push further into international markets.
Layzell brings to the role more than 20 years’ experience including working in private equity, corporate finance and in senior operational roles. He joins from the Business Growth Fund Plc (BGF), a high-profile GBP2.5bn initiative set up by the UK’s five biggest banks and the British Bankers Association to invest in small and medium-sized firms. 


The appointment follows on from a GBP50m buyout of the Fourth business earlier this year by ECI Partners, a process that valued the company at GBP50m and saw its founders and management team retain a significant stake.


Layzell says: "I am looking forward to playing a central role in building on Fourth’s well established position in the hospitality sector, particularly in driving our international expansion. Fourth has developed an excellent position in the sector with a product suite which delivers measurable results for its customers. As an early adopter of the software as a service (SaaS) model, Fourth is uniquely placed to satisfy the growing demand for outsourced software and IT solutions in the hospitality sector and beyond.


"The investment in new products, the passion of the management team and the financial support from ECI made it clear to me that Fourth has an exciting future."
Prior to joining Fourth, Layzell spent eight years with two of the UK’s leading investment firms, LDC and the Business Growth Fund, where he was responsible for new investments, holding Board positions with portfolio companies and helping launch the Business Growth Fund. He also spent nine years abroad working in corporate finance and operational roles in the US, Poland, Holland and Sweden.
He was previously the Chief Operating Officer at Defywire in the US, a developer of wireless applications, where he helped shape and execute Defywire’s overall strategic plan, with an emphasis on strategic partnerships. Formerly, he was Vice President of Corporate Development and Managing Director – Europe, at Noblestar Systems, an IT consulting and management services company. Layzell qualified at Coopers & Lybrand as a Chartered Accountant and holds a joint honours degree in economics and accounting from Durham University.
Ben Hood, CEO of Fourth, says: “We are delighted to have secured someone of Stuart’s standing and experience, it is a real coup and an indication of the clear potential of the company. He will add enormous value to Fourth and help us realise our ambitions – to replicate our market position in the UK, in international markets.”
