Norvestor invests in IT services provider Upheads
Norvestor VIII SCSp (“Norvestor VIII”), has signed an agreement to acquire the majority of the shares in Upheads AS (“Upheads” or “the Company”), a fast-growing full-service IT services provider for small and medium-sized enterprises (“SMEs”) in Norway.
Upheads is a leading IT service provider tailored for SMEs, with a particular focus on cloud services, security and software development based on Microsoft services and solutions. By combining a full-service IT offering with a close and personal customer journey, Upheads has achieved best-in class customer satisfaction across its 2,000+ customers in Norway. The Company was founded in 2013 by Ove Rydland and has approximately 125 employees across seven offices in Norway.
“We are excited to see Norvestor join as a partner and believe they are a very good match for Upheads. Norvestor’s strong track-record of scaling Nordic IT services companies and access to capital, in addition to the good cultural match with the team at Upheads, will enable us to be even more ambitious and accelerate growth significantly” says Ove Rydland, Founder and Business Developer of Upheads.
“We look forward to work with Norvestor and believe we have found a partner who can contribute very positively to our strategic goals. We will continue to grow, increase our presence, build future-oriented expertise and services and invest even more in IT security. I am convinced that this partnership will create very exciting opportunities for Uphead’s customers, employees and shareholders”, says Bjørg Tomlin, CEO of Upheads.
“Upheads has built an attractive position in the Nordic IT ecosystem focused on serving the SME segment. The combination of a driven management team, a strong and distinct culture and a scalable delivery model, makes us confident that Upheads can continue its impressive growth. Upheads fits very well with Norvestor’s experience in backing IT services businesses with ambitious growth plans, and we are enthusiastic of the opportunity to support management in accelerating the growth of the Company”, says Fredrik Gyllenhammar Raaum, Partner at Norvestor Advisory.
Upheads is headquartered in Stavanger, Norway, with annual revenues of approximately NOK 217 million in 2021.
Following the acquisition Norvestor VIII will become the largest shareholder in Upheads, followed by the founder, the Company’s management and key employees.
The transaction is expected to close in April 2022, subject to customary closing conditions.
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For further information:
Fredrik Gyllenhammar Raaum, Partner, Norvestor Advisory
Tel.: +47 930 32 846
Email: fgy@norvestor.com
Over Rydland, Business Developer, Upheads AS
Tel.: +47 902 02 364
Email: ove.rydland@upheads.no
Bjørg Tomlin, CEO, Upheads AS
Tel.: +47 994 01 234
Email: bjorg.tomlin@upheads.no
Upheads is a leading full-service IT managed services provider for small and medium-sized enterprises in Norway. Upheads offers customers IT cloud services, security and software development based on Microsoft services and solutions. Read more at https://www.upheads.no/
Norvestor is a leading private equity firm focusing on mid-market buyouts in the Nordic region with offices in Oslo, Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Luxembourg. The team has worked together since 1991 making it one of the most experienced private equity teams in the Nordics, having executed 81 investments with more than 300 follow-on M&A transactions, in addition to executing 53 exits including 16 IPOs. The Norvestor funds seek to invest in growth companies in the Nordic mid-market that have potential to achieve a leading Nordic or international position, typically through organic growth, acquisitions across fragmented industries and by geographic expansion. Read more at www.norvestor.com