How Can We Help?

We offer hands-on support, unlocking growth opportunities together from day one

We won’t tell you what to do but are there as needed to work alongside you on projects that drive value.

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The power of three teams

The people you meet at investment will work with you throughout. Three teams behind you, working together as one.

David Ewing ECI Unlocked
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BE PART OF OUR COMMUNITY

ECI Unlocked is our programme of connecting business leaders across the ECI portfolio, unlocking growth opportunities through a community of open conversations, shared best practice and expert insight.

Proven experience and expertise

There are five key focus areas that we’re most often asked about by the companies that we back.

A CLOSER LOOK AT HOW WE HELP

Strategic acquisitions

M&A can be a key driver for growth and scalability. Our proven in-house team can help businesses to shape their strategy, source and execute acquisitions, and help with some of the heavy lifting around integration.

How we help
70

PORTFOLIO BOLT-ONS SINCE 2010

Image of Peter Sweetbaum with a green rectangle in the foreground in the bottom right corner and the outline of a circle behind him

We worked really well with the ECI Origination team to map the M&A market. The impact of the acquisitions on our growth was transformational. What we were able to acquire was really unique capability, at the right price with the right organisations that made a difference to the overall growth trajectory.”

Peter Sweetbaum

CEO, Content+Cloud

STRATEGIC ACQUISITIONS

How does ECI help with M&A

How does ECI support management teams to successfully achieve their strategic M&A ambitions, and what does that hands on support look like?

What do you want to achieve with M&A?

Case Study

STRATEGIC ACQUISITION

MONEYPENNY

Moneypenny’s outsourced customer communications service was already an established market leader in the UK, with significant opportunity in the US market.
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WE WORKED WITH THE MANAGEMENT TEAM TO DEFINE THE CRITERIA FOR POTENTIAL ACQUISITIONS.

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WE BUILT A FULL MARKET VIEW OF 750+ RELEVANT BUSINESSES.

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WE SHORTLISTED AND SOURCED MEETINGS WITH POTENTIAL TARGETS.

This resulted in off-market acquisitions of Voicenation and Ninja Number with the US now accounting for c.30% of group revenue.

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750+
Full market view of relevant businesses mapped
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96%
CAGR IN US REVENUE, FY18-FY20

A real skill of the wider ECI team is that they’re always trying to add value.

Joanna Swash

CEO, Moneypenny

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A CLOSER LOOK AT HOW WE HELP

International growth

We have a strong track record of building truly international businesses, by supporting management teams to deliver acquisitive and organic growth from both our UK and US offices.

5 secrets to effective M&A
c.33%

PORTFOLIO REVENUE FROM LAST 3 FUNDS IS INTERNATIONAL

John Wild CPOMS CEO, a yellow rectangle on the left side of the image and the outline of a circle behind the picture

ECI’s New York Office were crucial really in helping us explore the US district market, reaching out to school districts over there, showcasing CPOMS to them and asking all the right questions. When it then came to speaking to a potential buyer pool, we were aware of what the needs were, and could showcase to them how CPOMS could be applicable to a market they were already in.”

John Wild

CEO, CPOMS

INTERNATIONAL GROWTH

How does ECI help with internationalisation?

In order to create value, many management teams we work with look to move into or further their position in other geographies. We can help management teams navigate this, and support on both organic and acquisitive growth strategies

Expanding into new markets

Case Study

MIQ

We helped data-driven performance marketing company MiQ execute its international expansion strategy, helping management to:
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DEFINE AND IDENTIFY ATTRACTIVE MARKETS

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ESTABLISH MARKET CREDIBILITY

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ENSURE CONTINUED BUSINESS GROWTH DURING EXPANSION

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7
New overseas offices
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75%
of revenue now from north america

Our business is so much better. The partnership has made our business even more scalable and stable, and we’re just a better business on all levels.

Gurman Hundal

CEO and Founder, MiQ

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A CLOSER LOOK AT HOW WE HELP

People & culture

We believe the importance of people and culture is often overlooked in private equity, but our experience has taught us that it really matters and is fundamental to scalable growth. It’s why we designed a People Toolkit, to help management teams to create a more engaged and happier workforce.

Interview from New York: Q&A with Brett Pentz
Dedicated

PEOPLE AND CULTURE TOOLKIT

Picture of Naz Dossa with two circles behind him on the right side of the image

One of the things about ECI that really stands out is the focus on people and the culture of an organisation. They’ve been very supportive in ensuring that we’ve got employee engagement, the right people in the business and making sure that the people agenda is the main agenda. That’s been a really welcome bonus.​

Naz Dossa

CEO, Peoplesafe

Case Study

MTHREE

Mthree is a supplier of much-needed technology talent to businesses around the world. Their widely-distributed workforce meant it was difficult to have a comprehensive view of employee engagement and gain feedback.
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WE SUPPORTED MANAGEMENT TO DEVELOP AN ENGAGEMENT TOOL TO SURVEY ITS GLOBAL EMPLOYEE BASE

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WE USED THESE INSIGHTS TO DEVELOP A NUMBER OF INITIATIVES TO PROMOTE EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT, INCLUDING AN INTERNAL COMMUNICATION PROGRAM TO CONNECT EMPLOYEES WHEREVER THEY’RE BASED.

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250
Employees surveyed from around the world
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2.7x
Return on sale to wiley, a listed US education provider
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A CLOSER LOOK AT HOW WE HELP

Tech & data

We help management teams ensure that their existing platform, tech team and tech stack is flexible and scalable enough for growth. We also champion data that can be used to gain better insights and make better decisions. Our Head of Cyber supports management teams to improve their security measures, with ECI itself Cyber Essentials Plus accredited.

Building Successful Businesses podcast: Phill Robinson, Ep2
67%

PORTFOLIO SUPPORTED WITH TECH TRANSFORMATION OVER LAST DECADE

Image of Chris Berry with the outline of a circle behind him and a grey vertical rectangle in the foreground in the bottom right corner

We’re in the detail of the business all the time, and as a SaaS business you can almost open up the back door and see what people are doing. To be able to have another external brain that can be applied to that, we get the benefit of someone else’s thoughts, rather than being on our own with it. It’s really helpful.

Chris Berry

Non-Executive Director, CIPHR

TECH & DATA

The impact of hiring a CTO at ATG

How transformative was the hiring of a new CTO at Auction Technology Group (ATG) and how did the enhanced tech platform have an impact on growth?

The impact of hiring a CTO at ATG

Case Study

ATG

Auction Technology Group (ATG) are a market-leading provider of a global online bidding platform. We supported the business in its digital transformation, transitioning from a print media background to becoming a global leader in curated online marketplaces.
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WE HELPED TO AUGMENT THE SENIOR TEAM WITH TECH NATIVE LEADERS FROM BUSINESSES SUCH AS PAYPAL, VODAFONE AND MATCHES FASHION.

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INVESTMENT IN A SCALABLE TECH PLATFORM ENABLED THE BUSINESS TO INTEGRATE FOUR STRATEGIC ACQUISITIONS DURING OUR INVESTMENT

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4x
As many people worked in tech team at exit
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£ 1.2bn+
Market capitalisation following IPO in 2021

We’ve had a really good relationship with ECI over these years both in terms of, I’d say, thought partnership and execution. ECI provided a lot of real, raw horsepower into the business at different points in time.

John-Paul Savant

CEO, ATG

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A CLOSER LOOK AT HOW WE HELP

Sales & marketing

Hands on support with sales and marketing strategies can help teams to think through prioritisation and ensure effectiveness of activity across:

  • Strategy and positioning
  • New product development
  • Pricing
  • Branding
Rory Nath’s insight from Bett (Part 2)
Annual forum

HOSTED FOR FUNCTIONAL LEADS ACROSS PORTFOLIO

BRAND POSITIONING

How did MPM’s brand evolve during our investment?

How did premium pet food business, MPM, focus on its most successful product areas and enhance its offering to consumers?

How did MPM’s brand positioning change?

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ECI have done a lot for us on churn, looking at quite disorganised data and bringing it to life. Once you have that, you can change behaviours really quickly and drive the lifetime value of our clients.

Joanna Swash

CEO, Moneypenny

Case Study

MPM

We helped an augmented marketing team with a brand evolution and the creation of a new brand for the North American mass grocery channel, leading to:
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LAUNCHES IN KEY MASS GROCERY STOCKISTS INCLUDING TARGET, KROGER AND MEIJER

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SUBSEQUENT LAUNCHES WITH KEY PET SPECIALITY RETAILERS PETCO AND PETSMART

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STRONG REVENUE GROWTH AND IMPROVED GROSS MARGINS

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60%
International Revenues by year of exit
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4.4x
Return over 4 years

With ECI’s support over the last four years, we’ve been able to strengthen our platform, internationalise our business and develop new product lines. It has been a fantastic partnership

Julian Bambridge

CEO, MPM

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