On the 22nd of June 2023 investment firm Value Enhancement Partners has taken a majority stake in Upforce. Upforce is a Dutch temp agency focused on international flex workers. Along with management, Value Enhancement Partners has taken over the shares from Dutch investor FIELDS Group.
Temp agency Upforce supplies international workers with a focus on food production, logistical and technical jobs. The company has offices in the Netherlands in Venlo (Headquarters), Eindhoven and Oudewater; in addition, the company also has a captive recruiting location in Poland. The temp agency, known as Upforce since the beginning of 2023, was created from the merger of five local companies in the central/south of the Netherlands (including SEP Peeters, Uitzendbureau Verbeek & Direct People). Value Enhancement Partners, together with management, takes over the shares of investor FIELDS Group, who has been actively involved in the company since 2018. Founders Gregor Popanda and Theo Peeters will remain involved in Upforce as co-shareholders.
Ellen Niessen (CEO): “In the past 2 years, we have professionalized the organization considerably after a period of rapid growth. We have now established a solid foundation on which we can build in the coming years. In Value Enhancement Partners we have found an enterprising partner who wants to support us in our further growth plans.”
Bjørn van Knippenberg (Partner at Value Enhancement Partners) adds: “We see that there is a strong demand for motivated international flex workers in many industries in the Netherlands and that Upforce is very successful in meeting this client demand. Additionally, Upforce is well positioned to comply to the expectedly increasing regulatory pressure coming to the market. We are very excited to work with the Upforce team in the coming years and will support them in their growth strategy that will (amongst others) include doing further add-on acquisitions.”
Joris van Gils and Rutger Alberink (Partners at FIELDS Group): “We have enjoyed working with Ellen and her team, as well as with Theo Peeters and Gregor Popanda. In recent years, Upforce has achieved enormous growth towards eventually approximately 1,500 active flex workers; the company can now rightfully call itself one of the leading players in the market for international workforce staffing. We wish Upforce, the team and Value Enhancement Partners the best of luck as they continue to expand the business.”
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About Value Enhancement Partners:
Value Enhancement Partners is a hands-on investor who has been investing and collaborating with boards of directors and entrepreneurs since 1999 to realize the full potential of their company.
Contact Value Enhancement Partners:
Bjørn van Knippenberg, Partner: bjorn.vanknippenberg@vepartners.com, +31 621 55 85 26
About FIELDS Group:
FIELDS Group is an entrepreneurial hands-on investor focused on developing companies with potential. FIELDS Group invests in companies headquartered in the Benelux and the DACH region and focusses on realizing “true transformations” with its team.
Contact FIELDS Group:
Joris van Gils, Partner: j.vangils@fields.nl, +31 641 31 33 39
Rutger Alberink, Partner: r.alberink@fields.nl, +31 611 49 09 14
About Upforce:
Upforce is a temporary employment agency of international workers in the Netherlands with offices in Venlo (head office), Eindhoven and Oudewater. Website: https://upforce.com/
Contact Upforce:
Ellen Niessen, CEO: ellen.niessen@upforce.com +31 6 51 42 65 22
