Investment type
- Carve out
LDC worked alongside The NEC Group’s management team, led by CEO Paul Thandi CBE, to back a four-year transformation programme. This initiative enhanced sites, facilities and customer experience and broadened the range of events across the Group’s portfolio, supported by significant capital investment. In 2018 LDC exited its investment to Blackstone and reinvested to continue to support the next stage of the company’s growth journey.
Founded in 1976, the NEC has grown into the UK’s live-events business of choice for organisers, exhibitors and visitors, playing host to over seven million guests and 750 events every year.
The Group boasts Birmingham’s National Exhibition Centre, the International Convention Centre, the Genting Arena and Arena Birmingham among its assets as well as caterer Amadeus and national ticketing agency The Ticket Factory. The NEC is also due to host nine sports as part of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
In 2015, we backed the management buyout of The NEC Group and supported the delivery of further strategic organic and acquisition-led initiatives across all business channels, both in the UK and overseas.
We wanted to change our business and realise our business plan. We wanted investment to build new businesses, organically grow our business, invest in our teams and complete some acquisitions to grow our portfolio. We had a choice of a few people to go with, and what I liked the most about LDC was their approach. First and foremost, it wasn’t the business, it was the management team that they were interested in.”
Award-winning event
The NEC won a number of awards during its partnership with LDC including ‘Deal of the Year’ at the Midlands Insider Dealmakers Awards 2015, ‘Large Business of the Year’ and Paul Thandi CBE as ‘Ambassador of the Year’ at the West Midlands Business Masters Awards in 2017, and ‘Large Management Team of the Year’ at the BVCA Management Team Awards in 2017.
Revenue grew each year throughout the partnership, and the financial results for the year to 31 March 2018 reported revenue of £162.1m, up £4.4m on the previous year.
This growth reflects the group’s strategy to broaden the range of events across the NEC campus and city centre venues following investment in facilities and increased use of customer data analytics to maximise new event opportunities.
All set for ongoing growth
In October 2018, LDC exited its investment in the NEC Group to Blackstone, and completed a minority reinvestment. This will allow LDC to continue to support the management team on the next stage of the company’s growth journey.
In 2019 The NEC Group picked up the ‘Best Venue’ (over 20,000sqm) award at the Association of Event Organisers (AEO) Awards.
Get your arms around the Value Creation team from day one, they are there to help you, they are a great group for LDC. We worked on sales effectiveness. I recommend every CEO to gets to know how you engage with your market and how you can do it better.”
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Awards
Large Business of the Year and Paul Thandi as Ambassador of the Year
West Midlands Business Masters Awards 2017
Deal of the Year
NEC Group – Midlands Insider Dealmakers Awards 2015
Large Management Team of the Year
BVCA Management Team Awards 2017
Best Venue (over 20,000sqm)
Association of Event Organisers 2019