Big exit for WestBridge as APEM lined up for Spanish acquisition

The powerful hand of TDR sits behind the acquiring business

Hello Rainmakers,

A big deal for you this morning, with a few moving parts that maybe weren’t in the press release, including the remarkable role played in the growth of APEM Group by its CEO Leah McGimpsey.

APEM is ambitious buy and build backed by WestBridge, and it has been sold to Applus+ an enormous global environmental business listed on the Spanish Stock exchange, but private equity investor TDR Capital - owner of Asda and CorpAcq - is part of an investment group that took a large stake in it last year.

The top line is that Greater Manchester-headquartered environmental consultancy group APEM has been sold to Spanish Applus+ Group, which operates in the testing, inspection and certification (TIC) sector.

The APEM management team that was backed by private equity investor WestBridge to lead a £10m buyout of APEM in March 2019, now led by CEO Leah McGimpsey, and is still ambitious to grow further as an environmental consultancy with genuine global reach.

APEM Group had annual revenues of £100m and a forecasted EBITDA of £25m this year.

According to its annual report, in the year to the end of December 2024 the Group’s revenue grew 43.5% year on year from £55.0m to £78.8m. Though it made a loss before tax of £12.0m (2023 – £8.3m) this was after deducting amortisation of £12.9m and interest expense of £10.6m.

The business also secured a £50m+ debt package from Tikehau Capital and an additional £7.5m working capital facility from Virgin Money.

The exit for WestBridge represents an 11.5x return on capital invested.

But Leah McGimpsey, CEO at APEM Group said she still wants to expand the business as part of Applus+, a major global business that was founded in 1996, and is listed on the Spanish Stock Exchange.

Last year TDR Capital and investment funds advised by I Squared Capital bought a majority stake in the parent company, which operates in over 70 countries with more than 26,000 employees. That deal valued Applus+ at €1.65bn, following a sealed envelopes auction process.