Polish MK Chimney Systems Sold By Riverside

Polish chimney and lining company MK Chimney Systems, owned by the Riverside Company, has been sold to the French Isotip-Joncoux Group. Riverside, which acquired the asset in 2006, exits with 2.9x cash-on-cash returns; the original equity investment came from the Riverside Europe Fund III, while the debt was provided for the transaction by WBK SA. Legal advice was provided for Riverside by CAG.

Riverside Company (www.riversidecompany.com)

The Riverside Company boasts an extensive portfolio of over 80 companies that were invested in to the tune of USD 3.2 bln under current assets being managed. Founded in 1988, Riverside’s portfolio history contains in excess of 280 transactions; current interests lie in growing businesses with valuations of up to USD 200 mln, and EUR 200 mln in Europe.

MK Chimney Systems (www.mkzary.pl)

MK Chimney Systems was founded in 1990 and caters to the European market; originally serving Poland, MK now caters to not only the German market, but to Scandinavian countries as well. 90 percent of the company’s revenue comes from flue gas extraction systems, or chimney, sales. The remaining comes from chimney accessories and other heating system related products. The company is based out of Zary, Poland. When the economic downturn caused the prices of alloy raw materials to shoot up in 2007, it forced the company to get innovative and develop new products that were not as susceptible to market price fluctuations. This key change allowed the company to sustain itself through the recession years and present tough competition in the market. The acquisition of a German distributor in 2010 was another key turning point in the life of MK Chimney Systems; during this time, its entire operations, including sales, marketing, IT systems and even its product line, underwent an overhaul and positioned the company to be in a resilient state. The resulting company is an extremely profitable one, but more importantly, one that is diversified on the product, customer and supplier front. The company is currently headed by long-time CEO CEO Piotr Siudak.