The Event Inc Group offers a digital platform for booking and managing corporate events. All processes of a conference or event – such as sourcing, booking, participant management, compliance, and accounts payable management – can be handled via its platform. More than 70 employees ensure efficient and digital processes in event management for over 10,000 customers.
Financing a company acquisition for further growth
Event Inc Group pursues a classic "buy-and-build" strategy: the Hamburg-based SaaS company has grown significantly in recent years through various acquisitions. It digitizes the business of the acquired companies and, at the same time, offers its customers a larger selection of partners.
The corporation continues this growth path with its recent acquisition of HONEST GmbH & Co KG. "We are thus further expanding our presence in southern Germany and our leading position in the MICE market (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions)," says Event Inc Group CEO Paul Philipp Hermann.
For its latest acquisition, they were looking for a source of debt-based financing. Why?
"Acquiring companies using debt is much cheaper than using equity – especially when it comes to already profitable companies," says Paul.
re:cap financing as a supplement to bank financing
Debt capital to finance M&A – but from which sources?
The SaaS company opted for a dual solution: traditional and alternative debt financing.
"We finance 75% of the acquisition amount through the classic route with a bank, and the remaining 25% comes from re:cap."
On the one hand, Event Inc Group accesses a bank loan with constant repayment terms. On the other hand, the company uses re:cap's flexible alternative debt funding, which allows Paul "to use a funding depending on our needs and development."
To that end, Event Inc Group and re:cap have worked together to develop a funding plan that can be used for additional acquisitions in the future. The scenario allows funding to be adjusted at any time to fit the business and new developments.
Flexible use and simple financing processes are crucial
Two things are important for Paul: flexible usage and a simple financing process. "Once I've gone through the onboarding process and have all the financial data – bank accounts, revenue streams, and accounting data – stored for underwriting, the financing can be done over and over again without much effort."
For the corporation, re:cap also comes in handy for refinancing other corporate acquisitions. Paul explains,
"We want to continue to grow in the future and are already in various talks to do so. In this way, we want to further strengthen our position in the event business. re:cap is an ideal financing partner for this purpose. Its funding solution can be precisely adapted to new scenarios and opportunities."
