13. May 2026
Succession with growth: How Buy & Build enables family businesses to have a second career
Managing company succession is one of the most emotional and complex tasks in the German SME sector. If one’s own children take a different path or there is a lack of qualified managers in the company, there is often a threat of the end of a life’s work that has been built up over generations.
Traditionally, owners are then faced with the choice of selling the company to a competitor (often associated with the loss of identity and jobs) or the classic sale to a financial investor who primarily focuses on cost savings. However, there is a third option that sees succession not as a retreat, but as the starting signal for a second career for the company: the buy & build strategy. AUCTUS is a pioneer in the German-speaking buy & build segment and has accompanied numerous companies on their way to market leadership over the last 25 years. This article looks at the opportunities of a buy & build concept for medium-sized companies.
The principle: from local champion to market leader
In a buy & build strategy, an experienced investor (such as a private equity company) acquires a stable medium-sized company as a so-called platform company. This company forms the solid foundation.
In the next step, further organic growth of the platform company is targeted. In addition, (smaller) companies from the same or a complementary sector will be acquired (so-called add-ons). The formerly owner-managed family business will thus become the core and driving force behind a new, rapidly growing group of companies.
Why Buy & Build is the ideal succession solution
- Preserving the identity: The platform company remains the core. The name, culture and values of the founder are not rationalized away, but used as a basis for further growth.
- Central “operational backbone”: tasks such as IT, controlling, HR and purchasing are professionalized at Group level. This relieves the burden on operations and creates space for real growth.
- Financial security & upside potential: The entrepreneur liquidates a large part of his assets on the initial sale. However, he often retains a minority stake and benefits massively from the increase in value of the entire group on the subsequent overall exit. The family’s assets are no longer largely tied up in the company, but are “behind the firewall”.
Practical example: When a craft business becomes a champion
Conclusion: The second career for your life’s work
About Auctus
With over 470 investments over the past 25 years, AUCTUS is the most active private equity firm focused on European SMEs. Our investments focus on majority shareholdings in companies with annual sales of between EUR 10 million and EUR 150 million.
AUCTUS stands for sustainable organic growth, but also inorganic growth through acquisitions. We achieve this in a trusting partnership together with the management of our companies. We specialize in building successful medium-sized groups of companies – we make market leaders. The more than 35 experienced AUCTUS investment experts currently manage around 50 platform investments from various sectors of the economy. The total of platform investments with a total of over 200 individual companies generates annual sales of over € 4 billion. Sales and earnings have been growing at >10% per year for years.
Our successful work is regularly rewarded with prestigious awards and top international rankings.