Waterland Private Equity (“Waterland”) is delighted to announce the formal opening of its London office and the hiring of Oli Bevan as Managing Director as part of its strategy to deploy more capital and deepen its presence across the UK.

The London office is Waterland’s 11th and follows the opening of the firm’s first UK office in the North West in early 2017. Over the last four years, Waterland UK has made six platform investments and 37 bolt-on acquisitions, with a market-led origination strategy focusing on partnering with entrepreneurs and family businesses operating in fragmented markets. The portfolio spans the UK, from the Textile Recycling International operations in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the North West, where Sandcastle Care is also based. More recently, Waterland has been increasingly active in London and the South completing off-market investments in Cawood Scientific, IMC Group and Sideshow Group.

Waterland UK plans to double the headcount across its two offices as it continues its local-for-local strategy of partnering with entrepreneurs and business owners across the country.

Oli Bevan joins from Dunedin, where he was a Partner. He will be based in London alongside Dominic Graham, who joined Waterland UK in May 2017. The team will be joined by Marc Lutgen, Waterland’s head of investor relations, who is already based in London.

Oli Bevan will join the Waterland UK board to accompany Ryan Hallworth, who co-founded Waterland UK alongside Managing Partner Hans Scheepers in January 2017. Ryan will continue to grow the eight-strong team in the North West.

Waterland Managing Partner Hans Scheepers said: “I am delighted to welcome Oli to the team. Our investment in talent, in local teams and in geographic reach remain a core part of Waterland’s growth strategy. At the same time, we see immense potential in the UK as fragmented markets offer consolidation opportunities and as family-owned businesses and entrepreneurs seek out seasoned partners to help support their next stage of growth.”

Oli Bevan said: “Waterland has a stellar reputation as one of the most successful private equity investors in the world, generating excellent outcomes for investors, owners and management teams alike. I look forward to working with the whole team to help accelerate our growth strategy.”