Benelux Business Awards 2019

6 EU BUSINESS NEWS / 2019 Benelux Business Awards more than 750 stores located in nine countries and delivering an annual turnover of € 1.8 billion. The acquisition has been recognised as the most important deal of its kind within the Netherlands in the past year, and has been praised by the financial press, analysts and the general public alike. Although HEMA is considered a Dutch icon, and the company has a broad and expanding international network of stores. Boekhoorn anticipates tremendous opportunities to grow HEMA as an international brand through offering an astute product portfolio and strengthening its online presence. Capitalizing HEMA’s international opportunities is part of a wider global approach to the business that Ramphastos has adopted over recent years. Another prime example of Ramphastos’ international approach is the creation of it's Buxeros Capital, a public-private impact investment fund established in close cooperation with the Dutch Good Growth Fund (DGGF). The DGGF is an initiative of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs which provides funding to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in The Netherlands and in emerging markets. Buxeros Capital aims to invest in promising SMEs in emerging markets, particularly Africa and Latin America. Buxeros assess potential investments on their economic and commercial viability, as well as their social impact. Following the Ramphastos business philosophy of active involvement with portfolio enterprises, Buxeros acts both as an investor and a business partner by providing practical assistance and access to business networks for companies with the ambition to expand in emerging markets. Buxeros Capital invests only in SMEs that are compliant with International Corporate Social Responsibility guidelines. It identifies companies with a strong, experienced team and scalable business model with economic and commercial viability. Though recently established, Buxeros Capital has already invested capital in several projects in Zimbabwe, Ethiopia and South Africa, with projects in Columbia and Uganda in the pipeline. Buxeros’ investments vary from agriculture and coffee production, to IT. Buxeros recently opened an office in South Africa in order to work in close partnership with its current investments and to source promising SMEs in Southern Africa. Buxeros Capital exemplifies the ambitions Ramphastos Investments has for emerging markets and impact investments. Ramphastos’ ambitions follow Boekhoorn’s personal convictions on social responsibility and his support for sustainability and environmental issues. Boekhoorn actively supports SaveWave, an organisation for the protection of endangered sea animals. He has sponsored Jimmy Nelson, the internationally acclaimed activist and photographer of indigenous cultures. Boekhoorn facilitated the adoption of two giant pandas from China by Ouwehands Zoo in 2017, and continues to make significant personal contributions to the preservation of the panda species and the conservation of its natural habitat in China. Additionally, HEMA has announced that it will replace all disposable plastic products with sustainable alternatives over a trial period. By tackling the plastic problem in its entirety, including both the products HEMA sells, as well as their packaging, HEMA is positioning itself as a sustainability pioneer in The Netherlands and is proving its dedication to sustainable technological, economic and social development. average returns on investment. Some high-profile exits include Bakker Bart, a Dutch bakery chain sold to Kamps AG; Cocachoc, sold to Suchard/Kraft Foods; Novaxess, a telecom provider sold to the BSkyB Group and Telfort, a mobile network operator sold to Royal KPN. Today, Ramphastos Investments holds interests in more than 30 companies with a cumulative turnover exceeding € 5 billion. Its current portfolio comprises a wide variety of companies across a broad range of sectors, including financial and business services, retail, health care, new materials and advanced manufacturing, technology, telecommunications, real estate and energy. In October 2018 Ramphastos announced its largest deal to date: the acquisition of the Dutch retail chain HEMA. HEMA currently employs 19,000 people, with © Hans Peter van Veldhoven © Paul Ridderhof