PE Deals

21 Invest lights up portfolio with Trime

Wise Equity is exiting the firm after first investing in it in 2019.

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  • Trime develops and produces lighting towers
  • The firm expects to hit €90m in consolidated sales this year
  • More than 90% of its turnover is generated outside its home country of Italy

21 Invest has signed a binding agreement to purchase lighting tower company Trime from Wise Equity, the firms announced on Wednesday.

Milan-headquartered Trime develops and produces lighting towers for construction sites, mines and live events. It expects to hit €90 million in consolidated sales this year and generates about 40 percent of its turnover from products powered by renewable energy. More than 90 percent of its turnover is generated outside Italy, particularly in countries where it has a direct branch such as the UK, the Netherlands and the US. It has customers in more than 30 countries.

The lighting tower market will grow, according to the firms, because of an increasing focus on worker safety in construction sites and the replacement of traditional diesel-powered lighting towers with renewable energy powered infrastructure.

Trime chair Andrea Fontanella and the management team will reinvest in the firm and keep their positions, while Wise Equity will exit after having first invested in 2019. During its investment, Wise Equity added several acquisitions that it said had turned Trime into a “European leader”.

21 Invest’s plan is to increase turnover via international expansion, particularly in the American and Australian markets.

“Backing an entrepreneur and a management team of a company that over the years has shown high potential is the basis of our investment strategy,” said Alessandro Benetton, chairman and founder of 21 Invest, in a statement. “We want to continue to support Italian excellence by investing in highly innovative companies that are attentive to both environmental and social sustainability.”

21 Invest invests in mid-market companies and has offices in Italy, France and Poland.

Wise Equity is headquartered in Milan and invests in small and medium-sized companies with a focus on Italy.