bd-capital is pleased to announce its partnership with Science in Sport Group, a global leader in sports nutrition. The company will be able to leverage bd-capital’s operator-led approach and international network to capitalise on long-term structural tailwinds in the segment, building on the group’s strong heritage and usage amongst elite athletes to accelerate growth in existing and new markets.
SiS Group, founded in 1992, is a leading sports nutrition business that develops, manufactures, and markets innovative nutrition products for professional athletes, sports and fitness enthusiasts and the active lifestyle community, with production facilities based in Blackburn, United Kingdom. The company has two highly regarded brands: PhD, a premium active-nutrition brand targeting the active lifestyle community; and SiS, a leading endurance nutrition brand for elite athletes and professional sports teams.
The Group’s core range comprises gels, powders and bars focused on energy, hydration, recovery and strength. It is an official endurance nutrition supplier to multiple professional teams, organisations, and national teams worldwide. SiS Group also supplies multiple professional football clubs in the UK, Europe, and the USA. At the Paris Olympics in 2024 – athletes fuelled by SiS supplements won a combined 105 medals (including 37 Golds).
With category leading science and elite advocacy underpinning its broad range of supplements – the Group has a great opportunity to capitalise on its market position in an attractive global end market which is enjoying high structural growth rates.
This investment is bd-capital’s second public-to-private transaction (but first in the UK), following the acquisition of Netex from Spain’s BME Growth Stock market in July 2024 – highlighting the firm's strategy of selecting high-quality companies that can leverage bd-capital’s operational expertise and partnership approach. This is the third investment from bd-capital’s Fund 2 (after the partnerships with TLC Worldwide and Netex), and the third overall in the Consumer Healthcare sector following Symprove (UK) in July 2020 and Bonusan (Netherlands) in September 2023.
bd-capital is proud to be partnering with the existing world-class Executive team of SiS Group.
Daniel Wright, Executive Chairman of SiS Group said; “we are excited to be partnering with bd-capital to realise the huge global opportunity that exists for SiS. Right from the off, we have been drawn to the operator-led model that bd-capital puts at the heart of its strategy, and we have been impressed by the calibre of people that they have brought and will continue to bring to the table. We think that the partnership between bd-capital and SiS has the potential to be hugely impactful to the business’ trajectory and are excited for the journey ahead.”
Richard Learwood, Operating Partner at bd-capital, will become the President of the Supervisory Board of SiS Group, and commented; “we have great confidence in the current management team and are committed to providing the resources and expertise needed to support their continued success and innovation. This is a business that is uniquely positioned to capitalise on sports nutrition mega trends, and we believe this partnership will unlock considerable growth for the business.”
Andrey Russinov, Investment Director at bd-capital who led the transaction, added; “we are impressed by the attractive fundamentals and high growth potential of SiS’s two brands, both operating in growing segments of the attractive sports nutrition market. We are particularly attracted to the science-led heritage of the company, with strong advocacy amongst elite athletes and a loyal consumer base – all of which provide it with solid foundations for growth in the UK and internationally.
We have been monitoring the business for several years and have been highly impressed by the results achieved by the current management team in the last 18 months. As an operator-led, international and sector specialist investor, bd-capital has strong experience in supporting leading consumer health and VMS businesses, and we will bring to bear our full range of capabilities to support SiS’s growth. We look forward to working with SiS’s management and employees to accelerate the strategy and unlock the long-term value of the company.”
bd-capital executed the transaction in close partnership with advisory teams from Investec (Financial), Stephenson Harwood (legal), PwC (financial and tax DD), and Strategy& (commercial). The company was advised by Panmure Gordon (Financial) and Addleshaw Goddard (legal).
Find out more at www.sisplc.com
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