Private equity investor Vaaka Partners’ Buyout Fund III is investing in the Finnish company Framery, a provider of soundproof booths and meeting pods for open-plan offices.
Vaaka Partners and its co-investors will own 60 per cent of the company.
In 2017, Framery more than doubled its turnover from the previous year to EUR 40 million. Framery has won multiple awards within its industry, and more than 90 per cent of its turnover comes from exports. Framery products are exported to North America, Europe and Asia.
“We will provide our extensive know-how, a new experienced board and support to accelerate Framery’s internationalisation. The members selected for the Board are Mika Sutinen, well-known growth leader from the pet specialty retail chain Musti Group; Timo Toikkanen, expert in management of international sales organizations and one of the people behind Nokia’s growth; Per-Arne Andersson, industry expert and previous CEO of the Kinnarps Group, and Jukka Kurttila, the marketing whizz known from Bob the Robot and Finlayson,” says Partner Ilkka Pentikäinen from Vaaka Partners.
Vaaka Partners will support Framery in strengthening its technological product leadership, brand value and international sales organisation.
“First and foremost, we were impressed by Framery’s superior technological know-how, its continuous innovation and its dynamic, positive working culture. The success of Vaaka Partners’ portfolio companies is based on creating a strong growth strategy, as well as additional resources, know-how and systematic modes of operation,” states Partner Ville Koskenvuo from Vaaka Partners.
Framery’s best-selling products – soundproof phone booths and meeting pods – are used by large international companies, including Puma, Vodafone, Microsoft and Uber, as well as Finnish companies like Outotec. Framery’s products are sold via a global dealership network, and the company aims to expand its international sales organisation and distribution network.
“Having Vaaka as our partner is a significant leap forward for Framery in terms of implementing our growth strategy. Framery’s management, Vaaka and Vaaka’s industrial advisers have worked together to update our growth strategy, which should enable further acceleration of our rapid growth. As Framery grows into a new size category, we will be able to utilize the numerous experiences Vaaka and their industrial advisers have had of corresponding situations in various growth companies,” says Framery CEO and founder, Samu Hällfors.
