We buy SMEs
and finance their transfer
PurpleShares is an investment company that acquires profitable SMEs and finances their buyout by a new management team or by the family. We commit our capital, support the new management and gradually transfer ownership to the teams.
"We created PurpleShares to secure the future of our SMEs, preserve their jobs and know-how, and give the people who keep them alive a share in their success."
Benjamin Wayenberg & Pierre-Louis d'Argenlieu
Founders of PurpleShares
What we do
Investing in the transfer of SME
We invest equity or debt in every deal: either as the acquirer of the company, or as the financer of the person taking it over.
We buy
Profitable SMEs
We acquire all or part of the share capital with our own equity and, in some cases, that of our co-investors.
We finance
Internal buyouts
When a successor has been identified (family or otherwise) but financing is the sticking point, we step in financially.
We transfer
Ownership to the teams
Our stake decreases over the years in favor of the management, the employees or the family, financed by the company's earnings.
The situation
SME business transfers are at a dead end
Every business transfer has two sides: a seller who hands over, and a buyer who takes over. Financing is what is missing in between.
500K
SMEs to be transferred in Europe over the next ten years
60%
of business transfers fail for lack of a buyer or suitable financing
3M+
jobs threatened by poorly prepared sales
Source: French Ministry of the Economy and Finance (Bercy), “Objectif Reprises”, April 2026.
Explore our market dataOur deals
Three ways to finance a
transfer
Depending on the owner's situation and whether a successor exists, our position in the share capital varies. In all three cases, we finance the sale of the SME.
Buyout
We buy your SME
No buyer identified. We acquire the company, appoint an external CEO to complement the team, and then open up the share capital to the employees.
Sell my SME
Ownership transition
Seller
PurpleShares
Management and employees
Ownership after the transaction
Family
Majority
PurpleShares
Minority stake
Family financing
We finance the takeover by your children
A successor exists but cannot buy out the shares of the parents or passive shareholders. We come in as a minority shareholder and finance their cash exit.
Transfer to familyBuyer financing
We finance an owner-manager buyer
An employee or an external executive wants to take over without putting their personal assets on the line. We hold the capital; they run the company and gradually build up their stake.
Take over an SME
The buyers' and employees' share grows
Year 0
PurpleShares
majority
From 0 to 5 years
Buyers and Employees
From 5 to 10 years
Buyers and Employees
What sets us apart
Our position in the market
An owner handing over a business usually compares three options. Here is what characterizes each one, so you can see where ours stands.
| PurpleShares | Investment fund | Industrial acquirer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Its role | Sustaining the succession | Financial investor | Strategic buyer |
| Deal financing | Our own funds | External investors (LPs) | The acquiring group |
| Horizon | Long term, no exit date | Scheduled resale after 5 years | Permanent integration |
| Who runs the company afterwards | Employees, often internal | Management driven by exit targets | The group, with headcount adjustments |
| What happens to the teams | Kept on, then made shareholders | Headcount reduction (optimization) | Headcount reduction (synergies) |
| Employee ownership | Systematic and gradual | Reserved for management | Rare |
| Local roots | Maintained, no relocation | Depends on the investment thesis | Site consolidation is common |
| Value creation | The company over the long term | Multiple at resale | Synergies with the group |
Our approach
What we look for in an acquisition
We don't buy a company to restructure it, merge it or sell it on. We buy it so that it carries on, in the hands of the people who keep it alive.
An SME active for at least 7 years
Stable profitability, a team in place, loyal customers: we look for healthy companies whose value rests on the work already done rather than on theoretical potential.
We leave decisions where they are best made
Operational management stays on the ground. We sit on the board, we challenge and we bring our tools. We don't run the company from a distance.
We have no exit date
No five-year resale target, no fund timetable to meet. Decisions are made based on the company, not on a liquidity horizon.
We transfer ownership rather than concentrate it
Every deal is designed from the outset for the buyer-CEO, the employees or the family to build up their stake. Our share decreases as theirs grows.
You are
You are selling, or you are buying
Two situations, two paths. Choose yours.
You are selling
You run an SME and are preparing its transfer
We buy your company or finance its takeover by your teams or your family.
You are buying
You want to run an SME and become a shareholder
We carry the acquisition; you take over management and gradually build up your stake.
Are you an intermediary, adviser or investor?
Our method
From the first conversation to closing
We close deals in 45 days through a four-step process, led by a team that invests its own capital and decides quickly.
01
Confidential conversation
A first contact with no commitment. We get to understand your situation and your exit goals.
0 to 1 week
02
Analysis and valuation
Review of the file with our tools, a substantiated valuation and a clear position.
1 to 2 weeks
03
Financing structure
Legal and financial structuring, mobilization of our funds and our co-investors.
1 to 2 months
04
Closing and transition
Payment of the seller, the new CEO takes office, launch of the employee ownership plan.
2 to 3 months · 6 to 18 month transition
Our competitive edge
AI lets us move faster
We build our own tools to analyze the market, value a company and run our deals. That is what allows us to take a position on an opportunity within days and close a transaction in under forty-five days, where the market counts in 9 to 18 months.
Discover our tools
Our commitments
What we guarantee on every deal
Six commitments written into the contractual documentation of every deal.
Total confidentiality
No file is circulated, and no employee or competitor is informed without your explicit consent.
Price transparency
A reasoned valuation, a clearly explained calculation method and financial terms laid out from the very first conversation.
Job preservation
We take over profitable companies so they carry on, with no restructuring and no offshoring.
A single point of contact
The same person from the first conversation through to closing, then supporting you strategically and on the board.
An unconditional payment
The price is paid at closing, with no earn-out tied to your successor's results.
An ownership plan
Every deal provides from the outset for the gradual transfer of the capital to the teams or the family.
PurpleShares
"We created PurpleShares to secure the future of our SMEs, preserve their jobs and know-how, and give the people who keep them alive a share in their success."
Benjamin Wayenberg & Pierre-Louis d'Argenlieu
Founders of PurpleShares
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