Madagascar: Investor exits textile company
Impact investment firm Investisseurs & Partenaires (I&P) has completed its exit from Madagascar-based textile company Ultramaille.
Founded in 1998, Ultramaille is a textile company specialising in knitwear and knitting. Based in Ambatomaro, this company founded by Frédéric Wybo currently employs more than 800 people and exports its production to Europe, the United States and South Africa.
I&P invested in Ultramaille in 2016 through its I&P Afrique Entrepreneurs 1 fund.
In 2020, one year before I&P’s planned exit, the Covid-19 pandemic hit Ultramaille hard. The company lost 38% of its turnover, orders were refused, cash flow was under pressure, and the closure of Madagascar’s borders to the world led to a difficult social situation.
”It was a terrible time, both professionally and personally. But all the partners pulled together and above all showed a human face. The best decisions were made during these difficult moments and the future of the company, which was very uncertain for a while, is no longer in question,” explains Frédéric Wybo, managing director of Ultramaille.
The crisis did not suggest the possibility of an exit. But by 2021, the company had recovered and emerged stronger from this challenge. Ultramaille has fulfilled all the engagements made in 2016 when I&P entered. Ultramaille has bought back its stock, which has been its goal since the signing.
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