Vandevelde’s vehicle buys Hillarys’ blinds

Luc Vandevelde's private equity vehicle, Change Capital, has bought Hillarys, the manufacturer of made-to-measure blinds, for slightly more than Pounds 100m.  The deal, financed with an equal mix of debt and equity, is Change's second after buying Robert Dyas, the ironmonger and DIY retailer, for Pounds 61m last March. 

Steve Petrow, managing director of Change Capital, said: "Hillarys has a customer base of 2m so this is a tremendous opportunity to sell them other household goods."   Change Capital also intends to sell the bespoke blinds using Robert Dyas as a channel.  Hillarys, which makes annual profits of about Pounds 14m on sales of Pounds 90m, currently sells its blinds through advertising and home visits.  Hillarys was sold to Close Brothers Private Equity in 2001. The investment firm stands to net a cash profit of almost Pounds 50m on the investment. 

Change Capital was formed 19 months ago by Mr Vandevelde, the former chairman of Marks and Spencer, with Euros 300m (Pounds 200m) from the Halley family, founders of France's Carrefour retail group. Its strategy is to find mid-priced retailers with growth potential.