The management of Barloworld Handling Belgium has acquired all of the company's shares from South African-headquartered parent company Barloworld for an undisclosed sum.
The transaction, which closed on 8 May, means the Belgian company is now fully independent from the Barloworld Group. It has also been renamed B-Close nv.
Kurt Boudt, marketing manager of B-Close, tells
Forkliftaction.com News that when Barloworld decided to sell off its handling activities in the US and the UK in 2012, the Belgian management team saw the opportunity to discuss a possible management buy-out with the group
(Forkliftaction.com News #563;
#580).
"Negotiations started in September 2012 and were concluded (by the) beginning of May 2013. The Belgian team has a strong belief in the strength of the company [in] the Belgian market, the opportunities it still represents, and see this as a strong investment for the long-term future," he explains.
Barloworld Handling Belgium was led by Barloworld Handling Netherlands until 2009 when the European management of Barloworld Handling decided that the Belgian subsidiary should be managed by a Belgian. Eric Maertens was then appointed as operations manager of the subsidiary. Prior to his appointment, Maertens was co-owner of a company that dealt in motorised leisure products. He has also held international executive positions in multinational companies including Alcopa 2 Wheels and Stanley Europe.
The new owners of the company are Maertens, managing director; Ann Devoldere, finance and contract manager; Jean-Marie Thils, sales manager; Dirk De Keyser, systems and logistics manager; and Bart Vandekerckhove, service manager. Their respective stakes are undisclosed.
B-Close will continue all of Barloworld Belgium's commercial contracts. It remains the exclusive distributor of Hyster forklifts in Belgium.
The company says its independent structure will enable it to better meet the specific needs of the Belgian market. Not being part of a multinational, stock exchange-listed structure will allow B-Close to simplify its internal processes and enable its staff to focus more on its core activities. The company expects its greater flexibility to benefit customers and partners.
Ralf Mock, managing director of NACCO Materials Handling Group, representing Hyster, has expressed his confidence in the take-over. "Eric Maertens and his team have proven their ability to run the Hyster business in Belgium successfully and I am confident that they will take the business to a new level."
Managing director Eric Maertens says B-Close is a healthy company with a solid financial foundation. "The management team has a positive outlook to the future and is enthusiastic to start this new chapter.
"The basic philosophy of the company remains the same: growth through being the best service provider in the market."
B-Close claims it is the largest Belgian company to offer customised logistics services and equipment in Belgium. It employs 150 staff, of which over 90 are technicians.