Facelift Becomes Part of DuMont Media Group

Frankfurt, 7 December 2016. Facelift – European Champion in Social Media Technology – Becomes Part of DuMont Media Group

DuMont Digital, the digital arm of DuMont Media Group, acquires 75% of Facelift brand building technologies GmbH, one of the leading social media marketing technology companies in Europe. Founded in 2011, the company develops and markets its core product “Facelift Cloud” – an innovative SaaS-solution for brands and agencies to implement and optimize social media marketing. The Facelift Group, with more than 200 employees, comprises five companies in Germany, France and Dubai and has more than 1,000 clients from different sectors, comprising mid-sized companies as well as global brands such as IKEA, Samsung, Panasonic and Mercedes Benz.

After the past 5 years of growth, the new partner provides everything needed for the company’s next stage of development. The two founders Benjamin Schroeter and Teja Toepfer will continue to stay on board at Facelift and manage the company, both strategically and operationally.

“The DuMont Media Group has been providing communication and marketing solutions for enterprises since year one. That being said, Facelift is an ideal extension of our portfolio, particularly since the software-as-a-service business model is such an attractive area of expertise for the future of DuMont. Personally, I strongly look forward to working with the two founders of Facelift”, says Patrick Wölke, Managing Director of DuMont Digital.

The founders and Managing Directors, Benjamin Schroeter and Teja Toepfer state “DuMont’s long-term commitment offers us the preservation of entrepreneurial freedom as well as additional momentum for continuous strong growth of the company. Simultaneously, it is a clear acknowledgement of our ‘Made in Germany’ standpoint.

The DuMont Media Group acquires a 75% stake in Facelift brand building technologies GmbH, 25% will remain with the founders. There will be no changes for the more than 1,000 customers – Facelift will continue to enhance its product, Facelift Cloud, in accordance with its high-quality standards and even accelerate the speed of development.

“The acquisition of Facelift is an important step for the expansion of our digital business and a milestone in the realization of our strategic growth plan, says Dr. Christoph Bauer, CEO of DuMont Media Group.

Klaus Wagner, Executive Director at ACXIT Capital Partners advised the shareholders of Facelift throughout the transaction.

“We have known Klaus for many years and thank him for his outstanding work in terms of M&A deal making and process management. He accompanies us since our first financing round in 2014, advised us on our acquisitions in France and Germany, and finally on our transaction with DuMont. He has always been a creative, energetic and reliable partner for us,” states Benjamin Schroeter, CEO of Facelift.
 
“It has been a great pleasure working closely together with this highly professional, strategically minded and execution driven, entrepreneurial founder team during recent years,” Klaus Wagner adds, “Social media has become a key driver of successful marketing. By teaming up with DuMont, I am convinced that Ben and Teja have found the ideal partner to further strengthen its leading position in this high growth market.”

The controlling interest acquisition has yet to be approved by the cartel authority in Germany.

About DuMont Media Group

DuMont Media Group’s three business segments “regional media”, ”business information” and “digital”  comprise the media brands “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger”, “Kölnische Rundschau”, “Berliner Zeitung”, “Mitteldeutsche Zeitung”, “EXPRESS”, “Berliner Kurier” and “Hamburger Morgenpost”. Besides regional advertising papers, and its book publishing house the Group also includes local radio and TV stations. Through the venture funds “Capnamic” and “DuMont Venture”, the Media Group holds shares in young, rapidly growing companies. (www.dumont.de)

About Facelift

Facelift brand building technologies GmbH was founded in Hamburg, Germany, on 8 February 2011, by Benjamin Schroeter and Teja Töpfer. The Hamburg-based technology company is one of the fastest growing SaaS companies in Europe. Its core offering is the Facelift Cloud, a unique all-in-one solution for professional social media marketing across all relevant platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Facelift has more than 200 employees and more than 1,000 paying customers, including many global brands. Facelift is a multiple Facebook Marketing Partner and a global launch partner of Instagram’s Partner Program. (www.facelift-bbt.com)

About ACXIT

ACXIT Capital Partners is a leading independent corporate finance and investment advisory firm for mid-market clients and entrepreneurs in Europe and beyond. Since 1998, ACXIT offers its clients comprehensive corporate finance advisory services including M&A and capital markets advisory as well as restructuring, equity/debt and strategic advisory. As an independent, privately owned firm we maintain offices and representations in Frankfurt, Berlin, Munich, Leipzig, Zurich, Hong Kong and New York, as well as strong alliances in France, China and India. (www.acxit.com)

 

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