4. WHAT WE DO
We invest in and help grow:
โข Brands with good growth potential
โข Requiring ยฃ5-20 million of equity
โข Each deal structure is bespoke
โข Majority or minority stakes
โข Companies with a UK based team
We invest ยฃ5 - ยฃ20 million into UK based branded consumer businesses. Which are likely to have
a company value of ยฃ5 - ยฃ30 million and that want to grow
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
5. OUR TRACK RECORD โ ALL CONSUMER BRANDS
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
We have an excellent track record and have developed deep sector knowledge in these areas
Bar chain Womenโs wear catalogue Travel clothing retailer
Clothing company Cocktail Bar chain Adult drinksCasual clothing brand
Upholstered furniture reseller
Delivered diet company Family clothing catalogue Latin American restaurant chain
6. MAXIMUSCLE โ SPORTS NUTRITION
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
2004: ยฃ10m 2007: ยฃ75m 2010: ยฃ162m
7. KPIs โ DEEPER, BROADER, 3 YR HISTORIC.
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
1 Detailed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Orders
Newsletter requests
Free Search Paid Search EmailDirect
Visitors
Cat requests
1.7m
1.8m
88k
5k {
{
8. REVIEW ALL TOUCHPOINTS, SPEAK TO CONSUMERS
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
1 Detailed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
2 Become a consumer
Gift ?
+60%
9. CAN INFRASTRUCTURE COPE WITH GROWTH AMBITION
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
1 Detailed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
2 Become a consumer
3 Scalable robust platform
10. ORGANIC, ETHICAL, ACTIVE AND RESPONSIVE ASSET
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
1 Detailed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
2 Become a consumer
3 Scalable robust platform
4 Database quality
11. DRIVEN, KNOWLEDGABLE, EMPOWERED AND SCALABLE
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
1 Detailed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
2 Become a consumer
3 Scalable robust platform
4 Database quality
5 The team
12. SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ACHIEVABLE, RELATIVE, TIMELY
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
1 Detailed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
2 Become a consumer
3 Scalable robust platform
4 Database quality
5 The team
6 SMART online strategy
13. THANK YOU
Piper Private Equity
Eardley House
182-184 Campden Hill Road
London
W8 7AS
t: 020 7727 3842
f: 020 7727 8969
leon@piperprivateequity.com
The Piper Story
Maximuscle
Areas of focus
Questions
Editor's Notes
Not all Private Equity People are DragonsSome have hearts and very humanBut what we do have in common is we back winners โฆ.. Some even have a sense of humour !
Piper a Private equity houseWe invest in fast growing consumser brandsAnything from 5-20 millionTeam of 13, mix of brand specialists and financialWe have ยฃ100m to spend.
Historic examples; Boden, Pitch and Piano, Bottle Green & MaximuscleExisting: Diet Chef, Celtic & Co, Weirdfish and RugCompany
Prior to joining Piper.Ecommerce Director at Maximuscle for 10 years.Experience 3 investments.ยฃ10m, ยฃ75m, ยฃ162m 6 year period.Due diligence difficult, easier, fluid.Now I am sat on the other side of the table and questions we ask were as applicable now as they were back then.
Firstly when looking at a business, create indepth Key Performance Indicators.Not just at top level visits, orders, AOV โ much deeper and wider.Deeper: conv, AOV and orders from Affiliates, eMail, Direct andWider: catalogue requests, newsletter subscriptions, phone calls.3 yrs prior this will give us a good ideaStory: Maxi loosing 18k enquirersStory: Applied to a recent businessKPIs will give you a good berometer of how the business has been trading, if there are any holes, what are the opportunities and forecast โ build bottom up.
I donโt think that there is any brand in the room that doesnโt know their consumer, demographic A/B classification, But choice, motivation, shopping habits and trends do change which can have a detrimental affect on strategy.Story: As an example, a famous shoe company put an exit survey on their order conf page. 3k completed, of which what % said is was a gift ?Register on the site donโt buyRegister and buyReturn a productRequest a catalogueRequest a newsletterForgotten passwordRecord each touchpointAgain this is key in understanding retention rates, areas of opportunity, is the strategy achievable or a potential risk.And how the consumer engages with the brand.
Do we have the right platform & systems in place โ is it scalable and integrated.Do we have the capabilities of servicing future demand and what needs automating. If you have the KPIs in place, you know how much traffic and orders will be coming on a week by week basis.You can work with your providers to test & load balance.Story: I am not advocating however at Maxi, instead of sending a ยฃ15 voucher to 15,000 as a trial, I sent it to 150,000That very long weekend proved that we could handle level of traffic projected in a 3 yr forecast.
When GSK acquired Maximuscle, the consumer database was a true asset.Demonstrate that it has grown organically & ethically.That it is active and responsive,This will inevitably be a great attraction and compliment many businesses.
In any business the team is key.Ensure that you have head count to achieve the strategy & that each member is empowered with the strategy and KPIs.If not, and you utilise external agencies, ensure that they are engaged, managed and again share the KPIs โ hopefully they had a hand in creating.Story: At Maximuscle we had a complete in-house team: Developers, designers, Adwords, affiliates.At Celtic & Co, there isnโt even an web manager, all outsourced to agencies managed by 1 internal person (makes more than Maximuscle online).
Finally, ensure that any online strategy is SMART and relevant to the KPIs.With all of the businesses, knowing the 3 year historic allows you to build a business plan bottom up identifying and prioritising key areas of growth.In Summary: It is worth reviewing/addressing some of these pointers and applying to your existing businesses.Apart from identifying some opportunities along the way, it helps you be prepared for when the Dragons come knocking !
