Pierre BORDEAUX MONTRIEUX
Group Partner, Siparex Midcap, Member of the Executive Committee
Rondot Group, founded in 1936 and managed since 1971 by Louis Rondot, the 3rd generation at the head of the company, is a word leader in the niche market of designing, producing, and marketing mechanical parts and electronic equipment for the glass container industry. The Group markets a dozen families of products that contribute to improving glass production line efficiency. Rondot is present on every continent thanks to its distribution subsidiaries, and has five production sites in France, Great Britain, and the United States.
Thanks to a strategy that combines the development of its own international network (UK, Germany, Italy, USA, and Asia) with targeted acquisitions in France and abroad, the Group rapidly became one of the leaders in its market by enhancing its catalogue of products and expanding its geographical coverage. In a glass market that is expanding rapidly, in particular due to the reduced use of plastics, the Group enjoys high visibility thanks to the excellent reputation of its products and services. The Group grew significantly over a ten-year period to attain a turnover of above €40 M in 2019.
Siparex Midcap became the Group’s key shareholder in December 2019 alongside other financial investors and management, with strong investment from the management team to accompany the Group’s continued development.
First of all, the Siparex Midcap team participated in defining an ambitious national and international external growth strategy. Hence, after having accompanied the buyout of Novaxion in 2019, which allowed the Group to offer a more comprehensive product range, at the start of 2021, our team provided support in the acquisition of North American company Quantum Engineered Products, which specialises in the hallmark mechanisms used in glass bottle blowing.
Simultaneously, we also assisted the Group in its continued organic growth through product innovation and supported its continued international expansion with, in particular, the opening of a marketing subsidiary in India in 2020.
The Siparex Midcap team also offered Rondot Group its expertise in structuring its governance, against a backdrop of significant expansion, by participating, in particular, in the recruitment of a Managing Director and a Financial and Administrative Director in order to prepare the management transition.
With the support of the Operating Team, Siparex Midcap also participated in the acceleration of the Group’s digitalisation by formalising a digital transformation plan. To do so, we accompanied Rondot in the recruitment of an IT Director, the establishment of a quarterly innovation committee, and the digitalisation and securing of its tools (CRM, intranet, extranet, cybersecurity diagnostic etc.). In order to go further still, the Operating Team also participates in Rondot Group’s reflection on industry 4.0.
We are also participating in creating a results-oriented ESG roadmap with the support of Corpokarma to ensure that ESG is an integral part of how tomorrow’s challenges are met.
Rondot is a Siparex Midcap portfolio company. Meet the team in charge of the investment.