Buyers and Builders
00:27:52 · Mikk, Felix Jander
[00:27:52] S0: Now you and Stefan, what were the roles, strengths and weaknesses when building all those? Because there were those different phases and there were obviously phases, which you haven't both of you haven't experienced before. So how did you go through this and which time you know that, okay, it's better for you to do this, it's better for you to do that? [00:28:12] S1: Just to mention in the very beginning I started off with Alex and later on Alex and I split up and Stefan joined. That was kind of also a journey which goes a bit into the direction of your question. Alex and I were still very good friends but we both had to learn that if you're good friends it's not always a match in terms of work. In the midst of the fundraising when we did the term sheet I mentioned earlier that's where we actually split up and Alex remained a shareholder but dropped operationally he dropped out of the company. And then I started looking for co founders. Together with our lead investor with Patrick from Tengelmann, we interviewed candidates. I did like I called up everyone, friend of friends who could potentially be a fit. So also there I had a long list of candidates and then we invited three of them for workshops and Stefan turned out to be a very, very good match. And now he's also a close friend of mine. [00:29:07] S0: But let's stop for a second. How was the process there? You talk here, it's so easy, but how do you actually like?
00:29:13 · Felix Jander
[00:29:13] S1: Yeah, it's tough. It was very tough. Because I mean we're in the midst of negotiations potentially it's a deal killer, right? If the founding team splits up like right in the middle of negotiating in SHA. I see that. Alex and I we communicated very transparently the reasons with all our shareholders. First we decided, then we wrote an email explaining it, and then the next day we called every shareholder or potential shareholder together and explained the situation and why I would stay, why he would drop out and at which terms. So we kind of didn't even negotiate. We just said, look, this is the terms. And then some of them like one or two said, oh, this is a little hot to me. I'm out. But most of them stayed. And so we filled up the funding with people that we had in our waiting list and so it was okay so to say. We're also lucky or it was the right timing in terms of fundraising. I don't know but maybe it was also the communication. Then Alex stayed for I think three more months to have like a smooth handover and Alex and I and Patrick we together got to know those candidates. So what was really important to me with those candidates is that it's a profile that complements me. Meaning what I'm good at is I can go out, can do sales, I can talk to someone, and I needed someone who is more rigid in terms of processes, who's more rigid when it comes to analytics, and so on, who's also more diligent than I am. That's in the end why we decided for Stefan because he had some previous M and A experience. He was at a later stage VC and he was a truly diligent analytic person but also a very good entrepreneur. So we actually didn't do interviews. Did just like one day working together. So we invited those three people and we said, look, let's sit down together for one day and work and then see how it goes. And in the evening we had a dinner with our girlfriends and wives. Yeah. So to also get a feeling for if that would like offer, if it would work on a personal level and and yeah, that's that's how it went. And then we decided for Stefan. I still remember that Patrick said, look, I mean, others are good as well, but Stefan's the only entrepreneur. And that's in the end why we
00:31:44 · Mikk, Felix Jander
[00:31:44] S0: Was there anything else which why the other candidates weren't a good fit or just the fact that Stefan had this entrepreneurial? [00:31:51] S1: Yeah, I mean, was the best entrepreneur and it turned out to be true. Yeah. And he still is. Yeah, obviously. [00:31:57] S0: Okay. So now where we are. We are you mentioned recently 15 companies, three fifty employees. [00:32:06] S1: There was roughly the point in 2024 when we started the process which ended up in selling some shares to Warburg Pincus. [00:32:16] S0: Was the... I've learned recently that great companies are bought not sold so I guess they reached out to you? [00:32:27] S1: Yes actually both. Yeah so fun story. We reached out to a company that was a company of the investment of Warburg's investment director's parents. And that's how we got to know Warburg Pincus already, I think in 2021 or 2022. And back then he he told us, ah, look, this is way too small for us. Very cool what you're doing, but not interesting for us. And then two years later we talked back and suddenly we were large enough for a potential deal. And then we also initiated a broader process. So yes it was sold in a way. So we had an investment bank. We spoke to many parties, but in the end it turned out to be Warburg Pincus, which we already had a relation to from back in the days. So both.
00:32:27 · Felix Jander, Mikk
[00:32:27] S1: Yes actually both. Yeah so fun story. We reached out to a company that was a company of the investment of Warburg's investment director's parents. And that's how we got to know Warburg Pincus already, I think in 2021 or 2022. And back then he he told us, ah, look, this is way too small for us. Very cool what you're doing, but not interesting for us. And then two years later we talked back and suddenly we were large enough for a potential deal. And then we also initiated a broader process. So yes it was sold in a way. So we had an investment bank. We spoke to many parties, but in the end it turned out to be Warburg Pincus, which we already had a relation to from back in the days. So both. [00:33:16] S0: Not too many people have this experience of selling to PE, rolling equity. What changed? Like it's 2026 now, you've been doing that together for two, two and a half years. How much can you share? Like how much has been changed when it comes to all things getting better?
00:33:31 · Felix Jander
[00:33:31] S1: It's a different scale and it's also a different level of professionalism, right? I told you back in the days we were like 20 people in the holding. That's still a very small team. Even though we were in total in the organization we were like three fifty to 400 people back in the days but it was still a little start up so to say yeah when it comes to the people and also the culture and the feeling and now together with Warburg it developed into a true corporate company in a very positive meaning yeah so It has clear processes, it has a central brand, it has a management structure that we started setting up back then but now you have like regional offices in place in every region and there's very clear P and L responsibilities and so on so forth. And that's just mentioning some examples which you can do across all dimensions. Also when it comes to operations there is Medigene, the software that we jointly developed further that we're now digitizing all processes in the subsidiaries so in the local offices with and yeah so so I think it's it's it was the right time to do it obviously every time when you do such a process in hindsight you think how we might have maybe we should have waited for six or twelve more months. Yeah? Then we could have done this in this acquisition and then done the process. Yeah? But in the end, I think it's good because you need to also leave some value creation for the next, and and Warburg needs to leave some value creation for the potential next investor. So it only is a success story when everyone has his own success story so to say. And I think so far it goes very well. As you mentioned earlier now it's a company with 1,100 employees. We're one of the market leaders in occupational health and related services in Germany. And that's pretty impressive when you think it's just five years ago that we started. Yeah.
00:35:23 · Mikk
[00:35:23] S0: What comes to mind if I say a word resources like before and after selling a BE firm? What changed when you when you feel going to the office, maybe reaching out to some banks or some people? And now you have those guys with you and previously it was just you and your smaller firm.