Silverfleet Capital sells STAXS, the Benelux Leader in Cleanroom Consumables Distribution

Silverfleet Capital, the leading Pan-European private equity firm, agreed to sell its majority stake in STAXS Contamination Control Experts (“STAXS^®” or the “Company”), the Benelux leader in value-added distribution of consumable products for cleanrooms in the Life Sciences and other industries. Financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed. Completion is scheduled for later in May 2022 and is not subject to further closing conditions. The acquirer is a portfolio company of Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, a family-owned company with a diversified portfolio of investments.

STAXS^® was founded in 1995 and operates from its headquarters in Heerenveen, The Netherlands, and a facility in Niel, Belgium. The Company is a leading value-added distributor of cleanroom consumables, including top-quality disinfectants & detergents, wipes, cleaning tools, gloves and disposable garments from third-party suppliers as well under its own brand, DOTCH^®. As a market leading contamination control expert, it has built an excellent reputation for quality and reliability. As preferred partner for contamination control, the Company has a strong and loyal customer base in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany and is expanding into other geographies. The vast majority of its customers are in the Life Sciences industry.

Under Silverfleet’s ownership STAXS^® has continued its strong growth trajectory through expanding the customer base and developing a clear ESG focus in order to help customers meet higher ESG standards. Silverfleet has supported the expansion of the Heerenveen premises, to increase capacity, and a significant increase in the volumes of products sold under its own brand, DOTCH^®.

Gareth Whiley, Managing Partner at Silverfleet Capital, commented: “STAXS^® is an excellent business, whose success is based on exceptional customer service which it has delivered throughout our ownership and, in particular, through the turbulent times caused by the global pandemic. It has been a pleasure for us to play a part in the further development of this business and we wish Johan-Detlef Dubbelboer, his management team and employees every success in the coming years.”

Johan-Detlef Dubbelboer, CEO of STAXS^® stated: “It has been a pleasure to work with the Silverfleet team over the past three years and to develop the business over that time into the strong shape we are now in. We look forward to a bright future within the Haniel group as we embark on our next stage of development.”

Silverfleet was advised by Harris Williams (Corporate Finance); KPMG (financial, legal & tax diligence), CIL (commercial) and De Brauw (legal).