Gimv invests EUR 3.0 million in Polish contact center operator DataContact
Gimv invests EUR 3.0 million (PLN 12.0 million) growth capital in DataContact, a fast-growing Polish provider of outsourced contact center services. Eric Ignoul, former CEO of leading Belgian call center IP Globalnet, will become independent industry expert on the company’s Supervisory Board.
DataContact (www.datacontact.pl) was founded in 1995 as the first contact center operator in Poland. Between 2001 and 2010 the company was subsidiary of Axel Springer AG under the name of Axel Springer Kontakt. The group is headquartered in Warsaw and currently operates 185 workstations in two locations. It focuses on customer service, marketing and sales activities for the Polish and German markets. The group offers both inbound and outbound call services as well as non-voice services. Amongst its customers, DataContact has several long-term tier-1 clients from multiple industries, including publishing, IT, financial services and transportation. The company is led by industry veteran Jacek Barankiewicz, who holds the remaining shares in the company next to Gimv.
Gimv will have two representatives (Jan Dewijngaert and Radoslav Tausinger) on the company’s Supervisory Board, next to Eric Ignoul, who will hold the position of independent industry expert. The proceeds of this financing will be used to support its further growth in the Polish market, including opening of new contact centers. The first one is to be opened in Stalowa Wola, South East Poland, in November 2010. The investment was initiated and will be managed through Gimv's Pragues presence, which is used as a hub for Gimv’s investments for the Central European market.
Jan Dewijngaert, Director of Gimv’s Buyouts & Growth activities for Central Europe and Russia comments on the transaction: "Following last year's investment and partnership in the Czech & Slovak Fund, Genesis Capital, DataContact is Gimv's first investment in Poland in many years. We are excited to further strengthen our presence in the region with an investment into a company that has a strong growth potential and especially a high quality experienced management team. The Group has a solid customer base that can be used as a basis for further expansion, supported by the opening of new contact centers across Poland."
Jacek Barankiewicz, founder and CEO, comments: "I am very happy to start cooperation with Gimv. DataContact already has a very good reputation on the Polish telemarketing market but this investment by Gimv will allow us to increase the pace of our expansion by opening new contact centers and build our market position to become stronger than ever. Our partners at Gimv understand the trends in the telemarketing market and I am also happy to be able to exchange views on regular basis with Eric Ignoul who has deep telemarketing experience from Western Europe. I am very excited about this deal."
No additional financial information on this transaction will be disclosed.