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Pacific Equity Partners
Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) is a private equity investment firm focusing on transactions in Australia and New Zealand. PEP invests across a range of industries and sectors, in turnaround and growth capital transactions. By 2023, The Australian Financial Review reported PEP to be Australia's largest private equity firm.
It is also said to be Australia's oldest private equity company. The firm, based in Sydney, was founded in 1998 by Rickard Gardell, Paul McCullagh, Simon Pillar and Tim Sims. All but McCullagh previously worked together as executives at Bain & Company.
PEP has generated several buyout funds for investors. By 2022, these funds had $8.6 billion under management. By 2025, these funds had $14 billion under management.
Since its establishment in 1998, the firm is understood to have completed 40 private equity buyouts by 2023. Apart from buying and operating large companies, PEP has made 100 "bolt-on" acquisitions in the same 25-period, these are smaller firms, bought and merged with portfolio companies, for their strategic value.
PEP claims to have "at least doubled" investor monies in 12 of its previous 13 deals, which have included the purchase, restructure and resale of several Australian and New Zealand companies such as Spotless, Hoyts and Frucor. The one business in this set that did not double its value was Patties, being resold at a multiple of 1.7, due to low post-Covid earnings for that food group.
Pacific Equity Partners was founded in Sydney, Australia, in 1998. The founders came from the consulting and banking sectors: Rickard Gardell, Tim Sims, Simon Pillar all from Bain & Company; and Paul McCullagh, from Salomon Brothers.
The company's NZ$50 million deal to purchase Frucor was partially funded by Bain Capital and helped by Mitt Romney, who worked for Bain Capital at the time. This became A$300 million for the company's first fund. Pacific Equity Partners sold half of their Frucor stake at an initial public offering, valuing the company at NZ$200 million. The remaining half was sold to Danone at a valuation of NZ$300 million. PEP investors made over 10 times a return on their investment in the deal.
In two early deals with New Zealand–based Frucor (1998) and Vertex plastics (2000–2002), within months following an initial public offering, the companies lowered profit targets and saw share prices initially fall, until recovering after a subsequent takeover. The New Zealand Herald wrote that Vertex "remains a public relations headage for the firm".
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Pacific Equity Partners
Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) is a private equity investment firm focusing on transactions in Australia and New Zealand. PEP invests across a range of industries and sectors, in turnaround and growth capital transactions. By 2023, The Australian Financial Review reported PEP to be Australia's largest private equity firm.
It is also said to be Australia's oldest private equity company. The firm, based in Sydney, was founded in 1998 by Rickard Gardell, Paul McCullagh, Simon Pillar and Tim Sims. All but McCullagh previously worked together as executives at Bain & Company.
PEP has generated several buyout funds for investors. By 2022, these funds had $8.6 billion under management. By 2025, these funds had $14 billion under management.
Since its establishment in 1998, the firm is understood to have completed 40 private equity buyouts by 2023. Apart from buying and operating large companies, PEP has made 100 "bolt-on" acquisitions in the same 25-period, these are smaller firms, bought and merged with portfolio companies, for their strategic value.
PEP claims to have "at least doubled" investor monies in 12 of its previous 13 deals, which have included the purchase, restructure and resale of several Australian and New Zealand companies such as Spotless, Hoyts and Frucor. The one business in this set that did not double its value was Patties, being resold at a multiple of 1.7, due to low post-Covid earnings for that food group.
Pacific Equity Partners was founded in Sydney, Australia, in 1998. The founders came from the consulting and banking sectors: Rickard Gardell, Tim Sims, Simon Pillar all from Bain & Company; and Paul McCullagh, from Salomon Brothers.
The company's NZ$50 million deal to purchase Frucor was partially funded by Bain Capital and helped by Mitt Romney, who worked for Bain Capital at the time. This became A$300 million for the company's first fund. Pacific Equity Partners sold half of their Frucor stake at an initial public offering, valuing the company at NZ$200 million. The remaining half was sold to Danone at a valuation of NZ$300 million. PEP investors made over 10 times a return on their investment in the deal.
In two early deals with New Zealand–based Frucor (1998) and Vertex plastics (2000–2002), within months following an initial public offering, the companies lowered profit targets and saw share prices initially fall, until recovering after a subsequent takeover. The New Zealand Herald wrote that Vertex "remains a public relations headage for the firm".