NVM - Key Persons
Alex Wilson - Chief Investment Officer
I have 15 years' experience, initially at PwC, then Rickitt Mitchell and most recently Mercia, and have built significant experience across a range of corporate transactions both in the UK and internationally. I have either led or been part of the senior deal team which has completed transactions involving North West success stories including, CurrentBody, Intechnica and Pimberly.
I am based in NVM's King Street offices joining Andy Leach, Oliver Wildig and Karl Cockwill and I am responsible for sourcing and transacting new investments of between £10 - £20million with typical EBITDA levels of between £1 - £5million.
I joined NVM in 2013 and head up investment activity across the North West whilst currently representing NVM on the boards of Thyson Group, Secure Retail, YorkTest & Inprova.
I am the investment partner responsible for the partial exit of musicMagpie which delivered at 12.1 return when it was admitted to trading on AIM in April 2021.
I started my career with Coopers & Lybrand in London where I qualified as a Chartered Accountant (ICAEW ACA) and I have spent the last 30 years working in the North West Private Equity community.
I joined NVM in 2012 and currently hold the position of Investment Partner. I am responsible for sourcing, executing and managing investments in London and the South East.
After graduating with a 1st class degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Exeter, I joined PwC and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2009. I subsequently joined the PwC Corporate Finance team where I advised entrepreneurs, founders and shareholders either raise capital to expand their business or help them realise value from their investments.
Throughout my career I have been fortunate enough to work with some fantastic entrepreneurs and ambitious management teams who have, or are in the process of, building some really exciting businesses.
I have been involved in the acquisitions of Edit, Intuitive, Agilitas and No.1 Lounges alongside investments into Lending Works and Primal Pantry.
I joined NVM in 2012 and I am the Partner responsible for investment activity across the South and South West. This includes originating and transacting new deals as well as managing our existing portfolio where I sit on the Board of Pareto FM, Trust Systems, Chemigraphic, and Flexioffices.
During my time at NVM I have supported the growth of a broad range of businesses. I played an integral role in our five year investment backing of MSQ Partners and helped the management team to both dispose of certain parts and acquire complementary businesses in the UK and US, treble profits and successfully exit in a secondary buyout.
Prior to joining NVM I spent 15 years with PwC as a Chartered Accountant before moving into a Corporate Finance role where I was later promoted to Director leading deal activity in the Thames Valley and South East.
Outside of work I am a keen golfer, wine taster and taxi service to my two daughters.
I joined NVM almost twenty years ago. I look after the Midlands region identifying new businesses for NVM to invest in and I also work with our existing investments to grow value for our investors. I currently represent NVM on the Boards of Dale Systems, Line Up, Trust Systems and Chemigraphic.
I have a background in investment having spent ten years at 3i before joining NVM and prior to that I spent five years as part of HSBC's corporate finance team.
As investors we are very fortunate to be able to back great regional businesses and help them to grow. I was delighted to lead the sale of Coventry-based Optilan to deliver a 3 times money multiple. Optilan is a great example of a regional business that we have been able to support, resulting in profits doubling during our three year investment term.
Job Titles:
- Head of Legal and Compliance
I am a Partner and the Head of Legal & Compliance at NVM, with responsibility for supporting our investment team in transactions and portfolio matters, managing our legal services as well as responsibility for both ESG and broader compliance matters.
I attended the University of Sheffield, LLB in 1997. I have a Diploma in Professional Legal Practice which I received in 1998 and was admitted to Practice as a Solicitor in England and Wales in 2000.
I am a Portfolio Manager for NVM based in Manchester but with a national role. I have a degree in Philosophy Politics and Economics from Mansfield College, Oxford. Prior to NVM I spent 11 years at 3i in a similar role where I was responsible for 29 transactions - all of which were exits.
I most enjoy the variety of businesses I am involved with at Board level, be it a traditional manufacturing business or a software development company. They all bring different challenges! Most recently I was involved in the sale of Intelling, a tech BPO, to RD Capital for a 4x money multiple which was the highlight of 2021. In May 2022 we completed the acquisition of Orbital Gas Systems by Thyson Technology, now known as nZero Group.
Outside of work I am keen Southport fan and enjoy fly fishing and have a keen interest in food, wine, real ale / craft beer and Italy. I also collect cookery and fly fishing books.
I am NVM's Marketing Director having joined the team in January 2021. My role is to ensure that the NVM brand is well positioned across its key audiences of investors, investees and intermediaries. The role is exceptionally broad covering both strategy and operational work - working closely with the investment teams as well as connecting with portfolio companies.
Prior to joining NVM, I spent seven years in Fund and Asset Management joining Enterprise Ventures (EV) as Marketing Manager and then appointed Marketing Director at Mercia Asset Management PLC which acquired EV in 2016. The early part of my career was spent within the Bibby Lime Group where I was Head of Marketing for a consultancy division that advised SMEs on compliance matters.
Over the years I have worked on several large scale re-brand projects and I particularly enjoy the investor relations aspect of marketing functions.
Outside of NVM I have a young family and we love to spend every moment that we can outdoors, especially by the coast where we enjoying paddleboarding.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Management Accountant
I began my career in finance working for a large manufacturing company becoming AAT qualified in 2016 then joining the team at NVM in January 2017 working in the Newcastle office. My responsibilities include assisting with the operations and internal controls of the finance department.
Outside of work I like to stay active, whether that be walking or something more adrenaline fuelled like completing my first skydive. I also enjoy going to festivals and music events with family and friends, one of my favourites being a trip to Glastonbury.
Witnessing the company grow substantially since I joined has made it a very exciting business to be part of.
I am the Chief Operating Officer and Investment Partner responsible for investment activity in the North East and Yorkshire. I'm currently a director of Easby Group and YorkTest. I led the exit of Kitwave One which returned a 3.0 times money multiple for NVM and Direct Valeting which returned a 2.6 times money multiple.
I am very proud of It's All Good and how it has developed during our investment period including the fact that it has created over 200 new jobs in the North East. The business has performed incredibly well since our first investment and I was delighted to announce a successful exit to Valeo Foods in December 2020.
I have a maths degree from Durham and am a qualified ACA chartered accountant.
Oliver Wildig - Chief Investment Officer
I am an Investment Director at NVM based in our Manchester office and responsible for identifying, evaluating and executing transactions with high-growth entrepreneurial businesses across the North. I also support companies throughout NVM's investment hold period, working with the management teams to help them deliver on the potential of their exciting businesses.
I am a Partner and the Finance Director and have overall responsibility for NVM's finance function, encompassing external reporting, internal control, operational management and fundraising activities.
I have a Masters degree in Physics from the University of Nottingham and am a chartered accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
Prior to joining NVM in 2016, I spent two years as VP of Investor Relations with The Sage Group plc, a FTSE 100 technology company, where I ran international programme of investor communications and external reporting. Prior to that, I spent 7 years with PwC predominantly working on Corporate Finance assignments and advising clients on a range of private equity transactions.
Having been involved in starting NVM up back in the 1980s, along with Alastair Conn and Michael Denny, I have played a key role in the evolution of the firm including helping to raise an institutional buy-out fund in 2018 and growing a successful Venture Capital Trust (VCT) business and subsequently selling it to Mercia Asset Management in 2019.