Member Article

YFM expands with another portfolio director as it moves to new Manchester offices

YFM Equity Partners (YFM) in the North West is continuing to grow with the appointment of portfolio director Gavin Chadwick. Gavin joins the five-strong team in its new Manchester home in the recently-refurbished ABC Building, part of the St John’s and Enterprise City Development in Spinningfields.

With a strong financial background, Gavin’s 20-year career includes ten years’ board level commercial, financial and operational experience. He joins from Ardenton Capital where he was director of strategic development, responsible for a portfolio of operating companies in the U.K, providing strategic support across all core business functions.

In his new role, Gavin will further strengthen YFM’s portfolio team in the management of its investee companies as the firm continues to deploy its Buyout Fund II, typically investing between £3m and £10m per transaction, into businesses with strong growth potential located across the UK regions.

YFM’s expanding portfolio of high-growth technology businesses in the North includes Manchester-based data validation platform Vypr which saw a £2.5m growth capital investment in December 2020; and award-winning marketing automation platform, Force24, which was supported with a £4.8m investment in November 2020. The Manchester team has continued to drive the growth of its investee businesses including data transformation software company Matillion in Manchester with the rising star of the tech scene completing its fourth round of funding in February 2021 which secured a further $100m from prestigious Silicon Valley investors, one of the largest growth equity investments in the North in the last five years.

David Bell, partner - head of portfolio at YFM, said: “2021 has been another busy year for us with YFM continuing to support over 35 portfolio businesses as they have adapted to the post-Covid environment with its challenges and opportunities. The arrival of such an experienced professional as Gavin is a welcome addition to the team as we continue to support fast-growing businesses across the UK.”

Gavin Chadwick comments: “As well as having a fantastic reputation as a supportive and forward-looking investment partner, YFM has an exciting and diverse portfolio from high-growth SaaS ventures to a health and fitness nutrition business. At a time of so much change, I am looking forward to using my experience and expertise to drive the growth of our investee businesses.”

Andy Thomas, partner in the North West, comments: “We are looking forward to backing even more North West businesses and Gavin’s recruitment adds further strength and depth to the team based here as we build relationships with management teams and their advisers in the region. We are excited that he will be joining us at our new home in Manchester – a modern, centrally located office space where colleagues, clients and contacts can safely come together to work and collaborate.”

YFM’s Manchester team also includes managing partner David Hall; partners Andy Thomas and Dan Freed; investment manager Laura Sisson; and marketing and business Support Manager Viktoria Harrison.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Kilmurray .