30th October 2024
FPE is pleased to announce that it has led a buyout of Point74, a leading Food Lifecycle Management software provider to the food manufacturing sector.
This investment is the seventh investment from FPE Fund III – the firm’s third specialist software and services fund, the successful final close of which was announced in May 2022, at a raised hard cap of £185m.
Point74 has developed a high-quality software platform that digitises customers’ new product development processes including recipe development, supplier specification, costing models, and workflow. Point74 has also recently launched supplier management and ESG capabilities to further support customers’ strategic objectives. Customers include leading white-label food manufacturers, retailers and internationally recognisable food brands.
Point74 was founded and will continue to be led by Mark Wood (Commercial Director), Sam Neal (Client Services Director) and Will Telford (Chief Technology and Product Officer), all of whom are highly experienced, have deep expertise in the food industry and ambitious plans for the future of the business. Point74 is headquartered in Bourne, Lincolnshire and has grown to 80 employees.
FPE has a successful track record in backing software businesses providing mission-critical products into targeted end verticals. With FPE’s support, the business will now accelerate product and technology development and invest in the go-to-market function to further the business’ market penetration both in the UK and internationally.
Henry Sallitt, Managing Partner at FPE FPE is proud to partner with Point74 to support their next phase of growth. Point74’s end sector expertise has enabled development of a market leading product, reflected by exceptional levels of user satisfaction and deeply embedded customer relationships. There is significant opportunity to expand the product offering and broaden these relationships, whilst accelerating go-to-market investment, driving growth in the UK and internationally. We are enormously excited to be partnering with Mark, Sam and Will to support their ambitious plans and continue the strong growth of Point74.
Mark Wood, Commerical Director at Point74 We’re thrilled to partner with FPE, whose experience and support will be invaluable as we expand our product capabilities and strengthen our market presence. This partnership allows us to accelerate our growth ambitions, deepen customer relationships, and bring even greater value to our clients both in the UK and globally.
The FPE investment was led by Henry Sallitt, Ben Cole, Harriet Hunt and Harry Gill. FPE was advised on the transaction by Gateley (Legal), BDO (Financial, SPA and Tax), The Continuum (Management), Rolaren Consultancy (Tech), Fortius Partners (Commercial) and Untapped (Market Research). The shareholders of Point74 were advised by Bishopsgate CF (Lead advisory) and Roythornes (Legal).