20 March 2025

Primary LBO for Gereso with Capital Croissance

LBO

sector Education & Training

The GERESO group, a player in professional training, writes a new chapter in its history with Capital Croissance

Customer Gereso

Since its creation in 1978, the GERESO group has positioned itself as a leading player in the fields of training, consulting, and publishing in human resources. It supports executives, managers, and HR departments of large French companies and the public sector in the design and implementation of their training plans. Also recognized as a publisher of professional works, the group, based in Le Mans and Paris, offers its clients a wide range of training programs, both in-company and inter-company, online or in-person, certified and degree-awarding, covering more than 550 different topics.

Counterparties Capital Croissance

Capital Croissance operates in the field of private equity (also known as venture capital) and particularly focuses on non-listed companies. This management company, based in Paris, is mandated by limited partners (LPs) to invest in the capital of start-ups, SMEs, and also mid-sized companies (ETIs). It notably carries out fundraising operations for taking equity stakes in growing companies. The investment funds managed by Capital Croissance invest amounts ranging from €0 million to €50 million per operation. Each fund typically invests in 10 to 20 companies to diversify risk. The SMEs or start-ups in which Capital Croissance takes an equity stake are valued between €5 million and €250 million.

The GERESO group, owned and chaired by Emmanuel Cosnet since 2011, has turned to Capital Croissance to structure a minority MBO transaction involving managers from the group. The company aims to continue its external growth strategy initiated in 2019.

With a team of about sixty employees and over 200 consultants, the group claims a position of expertise that has enabled it to join the exclusive circle of training organizations generating more than €10 million in revenue. In 2021, the group also reached record levels of activity and profitability. Its agility, the quality of its teams, and the swift transition to digitalization and remote training allowed it to smoothly weather the recent health restrictions that significantly impacted the training market in 2020. Certified Qualiopi and equipped with highly efficient support teams, the group now has the ability to integrate niche expertise to further enrich its catalog.

Towards accelerating growth

Following a particularly competitive process, Capital Croissance was selected to support the group. The entrepreneur-focused fund stood out for its entrepreneurial DNA, sector expertise, and its ability to offer attractive conditions for the managers’ entry into the capital. It becomes the minority reference shareholder through its FCPI Cairn Capital II, making an investment in the middle of its investment range.

"The Capital Croissance team made a difference with the high quality of the deal they proposed, in addition to a balanced agreement, a respectful, insightful, and dynamic attitude, all backed by a rare and particularly engaging level of expertise," explains Emmanuel Cosnet.

"We are very pleased with the trust Emmanuel Cosnet has placed in us by inviting us into the capital of GERESO. We were immediately captivated by the energy and strong values shared by all the group’s employees, and we are excited to support them in their ambitious development project, which combines continued organic growth and targeted acquisitions. Lastly, the continuing professional training market is both growing and meaningful, perfectly aligned with the DNA of Capital Croissance," adds Julien Berger-Perrin, Partner at Capital Croissance.

PAX Corporate Finance was mandated at the beginning of 2021 to select a partner capable of supporting the group in its development and future external growth operations. GERESO has indeed made two acquisitions, taking majority stakes in the management training organization Icare in 2019 and in the digital content specialist Mine de Savoirs in July 2021. Emmanuel Cosnet and his teams intend to continue this momentum, supported by their new shareholder and now able to target larger-sized acquisitions.

The transaction relies on debt provided by the historic banks Crédit Agricole Anjou-Maine, Banque Populaire Grand Ouest, and Crédit Mutuel Maine Anjou, as well as LCL, which joins the banking pool as the arranger. The financing also includes a specific line aimed at ensuring responsiveness for acquisitions.

PAX Corporate Finance thus strengthens its expertise in the training and human resources sectors. The firm recently advised on the transmission of the SEA group of schools and the merger between Develop’Invest and the HR consulting group Alixio.

"We discovered in our relationship with PAX Corporate Finance a committed, high-performing, respectful, and particularly expert trio. Together, we were able to carry out this MBO transaction at a fast pace, with great responsiveness, while maintaining a constant focus on quality as perceived by our stakeholders," adds Emmanuel Cosnet.