When the three owners of the fulfilment company Misi contacted Marktlink at the beginning of 2022, they mostly did so to inquire about their options in selling their company. Not within five years, was their thinking. Things turned out a bit different when a year and a half after that first phone call, the company was acquired by logistics service provider Logent. That company with Swedish roots has now acquired a majority stake and the three shareholders remain involved to profit from the company’s growth opportunities together.

Misi owners Patrick de Waal, Erik Lepping and Esther Koelewijn still very much enjoy working in their own company, which is exactly why they decided it was time to think about the future. “Very smart,” says Marktlink advisor Dave Kooij who guided the entrepreneurs in the process, together with Jelmer Duijve and colleagues from the legal team, Tim Rikmenspoel and Wouter Homburg. “It gave the three owners a very open attitude towards the process, even when we predicted that the process could very well be an accelerated one. Misi is a great company that takes care of its B2B and B2C customers’ every need when it comes to the shipping and delivery of products and processing returns. It works very efficiently and has a loyal group of customers.”

Working together and synergies

These aspects also caught the eye of the Logent Group, which strengthens its position in the Netherlands by acquiring Misi. “It soon became clear that the Swedish owners of Logent were serious about their interest in Misi,” Jelmer Duijve notes. “Both parties were already talking about working together and possible synergies from the moment they first sat down together, up until the final negotiations. I foresee a great future for both companies.”

Misi’s owners acquiring a stake in the company after the transaction was not a likely scenario at first. “After all the conversations we had, a 100% sale seemed the best option for Patrick, Erik and Esther. Of course, we discussed different scenarios and there was a lot of interest from different directions. As a deal team, we were very happy that all three had the same future in mind, and it was a near-unanimous decision to retain a stake in Misi. That speaks of confidence, they think Misi still has a lot of potential. Especially now that the collaboration with the Logent Group is set in stone.”

Accelerate growth

Patrick de Waal, Misi’s CFO and CTO is confident about the collaboration. “We have found the perfect partner in Logent, this strategic collaboration is a great and logical next step for our company. We have the capacity to serve both B2B and B2C customers from a single warehouse. For customers, this is what makes the e-commerce market lucrative. The presence of Logent in the Dutch market and its available logistic properties is what helps us to accelerate our growth.”