On April 3, 2023, investment firm Mayfair Equity Partners announced it is acquiring a majority stake in language service provider (LSP) Jonckers for an undisclosed sum.
Based in London, Mayfair is a private equity and venture capital investor focusing on the consumer and technology sectors. The firm has GBP 1.8bn (USD 2.2bn) in assets under management (AUM) with its portfolio companies including hair care brand Tangle Teezer and the developer of Fortnite, EPIC Games.
Mayfair said it plans to maintain an active partnership with Jonckers’ management and is “seeking exciting bolt-on acquisitions to diversify Jonckers’ service offering and market reach.”
Belgium-based Jonckers was founded in the mid-1990s by Marc Jonckers. The LSP has more than 150 staff and a presence in the UK, US, EU, and Asia. Its core verticals are technology and retail, with customers including the likes of Microsoft, Adobe, and Amazon.
Rapid Organic Growth
Much of Jonckers’ growth in recent years has been underpinned by its proprietary cloud- and AI-based translation management system (TMS), WordsOnline, which the company has developed since 2015. The platform is designed to support continuous localization — a typical requirement for its core customer segments — by reducing cost and delivering high volumes in short timeframes.
Slator 2022 Language Industry M&A and Funding Report
Jonckers’ CEO, Silke Zschweigert, told Slator that the company’s growth in 2022 could be credited to strong growth in e-commerce product descriptions (through WordsOnline) as well as multimedia and functional testing.
In 2022, the LSP grew more than 75% organically to revenues of EUR 32.8m (USD 35.2m) — placing Jonckers among the fastest-growing LSPs globally in 2022.
Zschweigert joined Jonckers’ executive team in 2019, initially as Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), along with fellow ex-SDL exec Dominic Kinnon, the company’s COO. Zschweigert was later appointed as CEO, in 2020.
Markus Zejermann, Director at Mayfair, said he considers Jonckers to be at the forefront of the “steady digital revolution” of the translation services market. Meanwhile, Mayfair’s Partner, Waqqas Ahmed, described Jonckers as a “digital champion” in a “highly fragmented and often analogue sector.”
Backed by Mayfair, Jonckers plans to accelerate growth, deliver bolt-on M&A, invest in technology, and enter new markets.
Slator acted as an advisor to Mayfair in the transaction.
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