Co-investment and equity stakes in industrial SMEs

10-P Consult is a management consultancy for industrial SMEs in Switzerland and southern Germany. Where we are convinced by a project, we commit ourselves financially – through performance-based compensation or by investing our own funds alongside our client.

This way we share the entrepreneurial risk of our work. For investors and owner families, it creates an alignment of interests that extends beyond the term of the mandate.

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Two starting points

You are an investor

Before signing, the operational due diligence needs someone who knows manufacturing from their own work. After closing, the portfolio company falls short of the business case, or the measures from the value creation plan do not show up in the income statement. What is needed is a partner who assesses the company robustly before the transaction, supports implementation during the holding period – and is prepared to be measured by the result.

You are an entrepreneur or shareholder

Succession is unresolved, earnings are collapsing, or the next growth step exceeds your own capacity. What is needed is a partner who shares the risk and leaves the company able to act independently once the mandate ends.

Four forms of financial commitment

The form of collaboration and the service module are defined before the financial commitment is discussed. Which of the four forms is suitable depends on the individual case.

Performance-based
compensation

Part of the fee is linked to the result: to agreed KPIs, to the earnings contribution of the measures implemented or to the increase in value up to the exit. The variable share depends on the extent to which we can actually influence the impact.

Equity stake

Where we are convinced by a project, we take an equity stake as a minority shareholder alongside the lead investor or the owner family. Our capital is thus tied to the same value development as yours. Size and timing are agreed case by case.

Financing

If a project temporarily needs additional funds, we can participate in bridge financing. We provide debt capital as part of an overall financing package that is borne jointly with shareholders and financing partners. Amount, term and collateral are agreed case by case.

Acquisition

If a viable company finds no successor, an acquisition by 10-P Consult may be considered, alone or together with a partner. This form is aimed at owner families for whom the continuation of the business comes first.

What we contribute

Before the transaction

We contribute the operational part of the due diligence: the state of the core processes, the performance of the organisation and the robustness of the business model, assessed on site and not from the data room alone. In addition, we assess the commercial side – market and competitive position, customer structure, pricing power and quality of the order backlog – and the financial side in the form of a plausibility check of the business plan: earnings and liquidity development, the earnings bridge and the assumptions on which it rests. The result is a picture of the company's state with prioritised fields of action: the Corporate Health Check.

During the holding period

We translate the value creation plan into a programme of measures with owners, KPIs and deadlines and implement it together with the organisation. Every measure is tracked on four levels: implementation status, operational impact, effect on the income statement and effect on liquidity.

Up to the exit

The management system, KPIs and problem-solving capability remain in the company. An organisation that solves its problems independently depends less on external support; this is part of the substance behind the equity story.

What our equity stake means

An equity stake by 10-P Consult changes neither the majority structure nor the control of the company. We provide equity as a minority shareholder and by invitation.

10-P Consult does not manage third-party capital and is not subject to return targets set by third parties. An equity stake is decided case by case; if a project does not convince us, we work on our usual terms.

Why we commit ourselves

We act as entrepreneurs and assess projects from our clients' perspective. Where we are convinced by a project, we want to share in its success and invest our own funds for this purpose. The financial commitment expresses this conviction in the individual case.

The same standard applies to every mandate, regardless of the chosen form of collaboration: after completion, the company should be better positioned without our support. We call this Institutional Learning.

How a conversation works

1. Initial meeting

Starting point, project and time horizon. Confidential and without obligation.

2. Assessment

Every form of financial commitment requires a robust picture of the company. The basis for this is at least a Corporate Health Check: an independent analysis based on the company's data, gathered on site.

3. Form of collaboration

Only once the need for action and our contribution are clear is the financial commitment agreed. Terms are set case by case; there are no standardised models.

Let's talk about your project

In the initial meeting, we clarify the starting point and whether a collaboration is an option. The meeting takes around 30 minutes and is confidential and without obligation.

Frequently asked questions about equity stakes and performance-based compensation

Does 10-P Consult invest its own capital?

Yes. Where we are convinced by a project, we provide our own equity as a minority shareholder alongside the lead investor or the owner family. 10-P Consult is not a fund and does not manage third-party capital.

Does 10-P Consult work on a performance basis?

Yes, part of the fee can be linked to agreed KPIs, the earnings contribution or the increase in value. The variable share depends on how strongly we actually influence the impact.

What does a co-investment offer a private equity investor?

Alignment of interests. The consultancy responsible for the value creation plan shares in its result and stays in the mandate even when implementation becomes difficult.

Does 10-P Consult take control of the company?

No. We invest as a minority and by invitation, alongside the lead investor or the owner family. The exception is a succession acquisition, which is discussed openly from the outset.

When does 10-P Consult discuss an equity stake?

Only once a robust picture of the company is available. The basis for this is at least a Corporate Health Check. The financial commitment is the result of this clarification, not its starting point.

Our key topics

With tailored approaches and proven methods, we support you in aligning and developing your company — independently, and starting from your current economic situation.