Former professional footballer and entrepreneur Guus van der Borgt has been working on a buy & build strategy for years. First he did that as 100% owner of wholesaler Interhal, but since 2018 he is pulling together with investment company Antea. 'Taking over a business is no longer so exciting. Integration is the trickiest part.'
On the wall of his office in Breda hangs a modest photo collection, showing Guus van der Borgt in Willem II and NAC uniforms. Until the age of 30, he played professional soccer, with a fourth place in the premier league and a cup final as highlights.
But Van der Borgt was always aware of a life after soccer. He completed an HEAO education and worked at ISPC for more than 20 years. He has been an entrepreneur since 2009, after being approached to take over Interhal, which, like ISPC, is (partly) a catering wholesaler. He knows that world like the back of his hand.
First acquisition
Interhal now consists of seven operating companies, has 38 employees and turns over revenue of 18 million euros. Some 60 percent of revenue comes from the professional branch, particularly hotels, restaurants, cash-and-carry companies such as Hanos and Sligro, and large healthcare institutions. The rest comes from retail, such as online stores, cooking stores and De Bijenkorf. 'The trick is to make your portfolio richer and richer, so you can sell more stuff. Preferably we get brands exclusively for the Netherlands or the Benelux; that forms the basis of your business.'
Sometimes I approach people myself. We go for a bite to eat and I just throw it on the table, I'm very direct. Sometimes you hit the mark completely, sometimes you're right. Then there is an opening
In 2012, he made his first acquisition with the glass crystal brand Schott Zwiesel. A year later, he bought the distributorship of Rak porcelain, which did a lot of business with hotel chain Van der Valk. This was followed in 2017 by Abodee, a business that reinforced Interhal's retail arm with trendy kitchen and home accessories.
Pre-exit
Van der Borgt had a taste for it, until his wife's illness forced him to take a step back. 'She suffers from a hereditary condition. We don't know when, but eventually she will end up in a wheelchair. I wanted to spend more time with her. You can't do that as DGA of such a business, because it keeps you busy day and night.'
Van der Borgt sold 70% of his business: 50% to investment company Antea and 20% to Interhal's current managing director. In this way, he brought some of the value of his business on dry land and stepped down from general manager to sales director so that he could work four days a week.
The business' strategy is clear. 'We want to achieve revenue of 25 million euros in 2025 through acquisitions and organic growth. We have now made three acquisitions. Pabst & Pabst and Hagedoorn, with their tableware, are both in the middle and upper segments of the market. We bought Cortina out of bankruptcy. This contained the Moleskine brand, known for its black notebooks. A nice gift item.
Van der Borgt looks for businesses with revenues of 1 to 5 million euros. 'They must be profitable, solid and easy to integrate. In the long run, we must also be able to get synergy out of them, for example by eliminating duplicated positions or by supplying from our central warehouse.'
Because he has been in the business for so long, he regularly gets offered something. 'People call up: "Are you interested?" Sometimes I approach people myself. We go for a bite to eat and I just throw it on the table, I'm very direct. Sometimes you hit the mark completely, sometimes you're right. Then there's an opening.
Risks
The next step is to call in the numbers. 'Together with Pieter Schouten, our managing director, I look at the profit margin, cost structure, synergy benefits. What about the brands they carry, do we need them or not? Is there one big brand that is interesting, or are they good in certain customer groups? Then the case is presented to Antea. 'The latter, rightly, points more to the possible risks, while we see more the opportunities. The private equity company has 50% of the shares, so there has to be prior approval from them as well as from our supervisory board before we can make an acquisition.
At the same time, the entrepreneur experiences a lot of freedom. 'Of course, I have to provide extensive monthly figures and we have been given a SB, but that's all. I can do business as I have always done. And if I need Antea, they are always there for me.'
Integration
Buying a business holds few secrets for Van der Borgt anymore. 'The process is always the same. The hardest part is the integration. When I bought Abodee, there were twelve of them. The business was located in Heesch, an hour's drive from here. I immediately wanted synergy, closed the branch there and moved everything to Breda. Five months later there was only one employee left. It worked out well in the end, but with hindsight you sometimes think: wouldn't it have been better to leave it standalone?'
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