Selected case studies and manager awards within the portfolio
Strong track record in capital raising and developing companies
Case studies
Bofex d.o.o.
| Year of investment: | 1995 |
| Share: | 35% |
| Location: | Ljubljana, Slovenia |
| Manager: | Dipl.oec. Schollmayer |
| Revenues at time of investment: | € 5 million |
| Employees at time of investment: | 25 |
| Year of exit: | 1998 |
| Revenues at time of exit: | € 28 million |
| Employees at time of exit: | 100 |
| Website: | www.bigbang.si |
Bofex is a distributor and retailer in consumer electronics. Under the brandname „Big Bang“ it grew within 3 years from a small retailer business to the single largest consumer electronics business in Slovenia with a market share of approx. 30%.
Revenues grew from € 5 million in 1995 to approx. € 28 million in 1998. At the time of the exit the company had 100 employees. At the beginning of 1999 an exit through a trade sale with a multiple of 4.7 and an IRR of 56% p.a. was achieved.
Keko-Varicon d.o.o.
| Year of investment: | 1999 |
| Share: | 63% |
| Location: | Zuzemberk, Slovenia |
| Managers: | Mr. Zivic, Mrs. Zivic |
| Revenues at time of investment: | € 1.5 million |
| Employees at time of investment: | 70 |
| Year of exit: | 2007 |
| Revenues at time of exit: | € 6.8 million |
| Employees at time of exit: | 150 |
| Website: | www.keko-varicon.si |
Keko Varicon produces and distributes passive ceramic electronic protective components used in second level overvoltage protection. The telecom industry (Ericsson, Alcatel) and the automotive industry (Daimler-Chrysler, BMW, VW-Audi group, Hella, Bosch) are the main customers of the company. During Horizonte’s shareholding revenues increased by 342%.
Keko`s manager, Mr. Zivic, was awarded the Golden Gazelle 2004 award for the fastest growing technology company in Slovenia.
In 2007 an exit through a trade sale with a multiple of 4.2 and an IRR of 21% p.a. was achieved.
Kosevska Hills d.o.o.
| Year of investment: | 2000 |
| Share: | 50% |
| Location: | Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina |
| Managers: | Mr. Tie Sosnowski |
| Revenues at time of investment: | nihil; real estate development project |
| Employees at time of investment: | nihil |
| Year of exit: | 2007 |
| Revenues at time of exit: | € 0.3 million |
| Employees at time of exit: | 2 |
| Website: | www.triland.net |
A residential building with 20 high-standard apartments with project costs of in total € 2.5 million was erected in the prestigious Kosevo region of Sarajevo.
In 2007 the company was sold in a trade sale with a multiple of 1.7.
Fabrika Cementa Lukavac d.d.
| Year of investment: | 2002 |
| Share: | 8% |
| Location: | Lukavac, Bosnia & Herzegovina |
| Manager: | Ing. Izet Imamović |
| Revenues at time of investment: | € 19 million |
| Employees at time of investment: | 450 |
| Year of exit: | 2005 |
| Revenues at time of exit: | € 26 million |
| Employees at time of exit: | 360 |
| Website: | www.fclukavac.ba |
FCL is one of two cement plants in Bosnia-Herzegovina. During the privatization process in 2001 Horizonte supported the Austrian company Asamer & Hufnagl to take over a 51% share and to organize loans from a banking consortium including IFC for the modernization of the plant. The privatization of FCL has been the largest in Bosnia so far (volume € 18 million).
Today the plant works at full capacity and is highly profitable. Through an investment program of € 70 million the plant capacity has subsequently been increased to 600.000 tons per year.
Today the company is the market leader in the region and has sales of about € 26 million. In December 2005 the shares were sold in a trade sale with a multiple of 1.9 and an IRR of 26% p.a.
MKT Print d.d.
| Year of investment: | 1996 |
| Share: | 31% |
| Location: | Ljubljana, Slovenia |
| Managers: | Mr. F. Predan, Mr. A. Kropej |
| Revenues at time of investment: | € 14 million |
| Employees at time of investment: | 550 |
| Year of exit: | 2005 |
| Revenues at time of exit: | € 19 million |
| Employees at time of exit: | 250 |
| Website: | www.mkt-print.com |
MKT PRINT Printing and Binding House is a company with more than 80 years of tradition in printing and binding hard and soft covered books. For more than 40 years the products and services have been present on the markets of Western Europe, where it realises more than 80% of its revenues and cooperates with the most eminent publishers.
After a drastic turn around process controlled and monitored by Horizonte MKT became a modern, top efficient and profitable company employing about 250 people with revenues of € 20 million.
Horizonte exited in 2005 via a trade sale with a multiple of 2.4.
Company awards
Horizonte has proven its ability to select outstanding successful winners which is evidenced by the awards mentioned below:
Who are gazelles?
Gazelles are companies which start up being small – yet, they grow very quickly and in that respect create the majority of new jobs. Elephants are large companies who on the average are losing jobs.
Thus, to a large extent the ability of an individual economy to grow and create employment is dependent on its ability to foster gazelles.
2007 – Komptech awarded export prize by the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber – April 25, 2007
Vienna – KOMPTECH, waste treatment specialist, won this year’s export prize of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber. The company currently exports 95% of its products and services. The price has been awarded to KOMPTECH on Wednesday evening by the minister of economic affairs Martin Bartenstein and the president of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber Christoph Leitl.
2005 – Entrepreneur of the Year 2005 (Dr. Ales Strancar / Bia Separations d.o.o.)
The Manager of the Year award has been given to outstanding entrepreneurs by the Slovene business magazine PODJETNIK (Enterpreneur) since 1992 and is such the oldest entrepreneurial award in Slovenia.
2004 – Golden Gazelle (DI Zoran Zivic / Keko Varicon d.o.o.)
The Golden Gazelle award is given to the fastest growing company in Slovenia by Gazela R.E., a leading Slovene publisher of business magazines.
2004 – Frost & Sullivan Technology Leadership Award
Boehringer Ingelheim Austria GmbH has received the 2004 Frost & Sullivan Technology Leadership Award for their innovative pDNA manufacturing process developed in collaboration with BIA Separations. The award was justified with the following words (among other): “The company is leading technology providers in the race to capitalise on the huge demand for new therapeutics by investing in an area which has received scant attention – technology innovation in downstream processing.”
1997 – Golden Gazelle (Jurij Schollmayer / Bofex d.o.o.)
The Golden Gazelle award is given to the fastest growing company in Slovenia by Gazela R.E., a leading Slovene publisher of business magazines. Bofex has now already won the “Golden Gazelle” award twice: in 1997 and 2002.