Foresight announces exit from speciality chemicals manufacturer FIS Chemicals delivering 4.2x return

• Foresight Group have successfully exited FIS Chemicals, delivering a return of 4.2x and a 33% IRR following their 2020 investment.
• FIS will join Shrieve Chemical Company, after achieving significant growth since investment and expanding into new markets, products and geographies under the current management team.
• Foresight Group now has over 60 exits across the UK and Ireland since 2020, and has invested more than £80m in Scotland across 30 companies.

Foresight Group (“Foresight”) have successfully exited FIS Chemicals (“FIS” or “the Company”), achieving a 4.2x return on invested capital.

FIS will now join Shrieve Chemical Company, a US based value-added distributor of speciality and commodity chemicals. The investment has generated an IRR of 33% for Foresight and follows the rapid growth of the business since the original investment in 2020.

Established in 1980 and based in Aberdeen, FIS specialises in the formulation, manufacture and distribution of chemical products for customers across a range of industrial sectors - including oil & gas, renewables, marine, hospitality and logistics. Following a Management Buy-In in 2020, led by Kenny Woods and Gordon Davidson, the management team have accelerated FIS’ growth by diversifying into new end-markets, growing internationally and expanding the product offering, both organically and through acquisition.

During the investment period, annual revenue increased by more than 160% and FIS has remained committed to improving energy usage practices and reducing environmental impact. As part of its annual ESG report, FIS has committed to Net Zero emissions by 2030 and has reduced annual C02 emissions by 70% since 2020.

Kenny Woods, CEO of FIS, said: “I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Foresight and Maven for their belief in the business and for courageously backing the management team amid the 2020 pandemic. Their expert guidance, continued support and trusted partnership have been invaluable throughout this journey, and it has been a genuine pleasure working together. I am incredibly proud of what the FIS team has achieved. Our year-on-year growth is a testament to their dedication, talent and resilience. Looking ahead, we are excited about the opportunities with Shrieve Chemicals. Becoming part of a larger and more diverse organisation creates new opportunities for the FIS team and further strengthens our position in the market. We will continue to focus on manufacturing high-quality products for our extensive customer base, while bringing new technologies and solutions to the global market.”

Ryan Finesy, Senior Investment Manager at Foresight, commented: “FIS is a real success story for Scottish SMEs and a great example of private capital enabling the continued growth of a well-established business, both internationally and domestically. It has been a pleasure working with Kenny, Gordon and the wider team. We wish them all the best as part of Shrieve and look forward to hearing about the Company’s continued success. FIS also demonstrates that having sustainability as a key component of business strategy helps drive long term resilience and value”

To date, Foresight has invested over £80 million into growing companies in Scotland across all sectors and transaction types, which has created over 170 local high-quality jobs. Our recent investments include Mclaggan + Co, Graham + Sibbald, MyWay Digital Health and uFraction8. FIS represents the third Scottish exit Foresight has achieved in the past four years, following Codeplay Software and Substantive Research. This demonstrates how Foresight enables the founders and management teams it supports to build resilient and prosperous companies that deliver strong economic returns and to have a positive impact on the societies in which they operate.