Fulfilmentcrowd Secures Majority Investment from Palatine as BGF Reinvests
Deal News | Jun 02, 2025 | Business Growth Fund (BGF)
Business Growth Fund (BGF) has successfully exited from fulfilmentcrowd, a Lancashire-based global e-commerce fulfilment and logistics business, by selling a majority stake to mid-market private equity firm Palatine. However, BGF has reinvested in the company, taking a minority stake and continuing to support its global expansion driven by burgeoning e-commerce demand. Fulfilmentcrowd has expanded its operations with recent hub openings in Sydney and Dublin, and it has shown significant growth by fulfilling nine million shipments last year alone. Palatine's investment is seen as validation of fulfilmentcrowd's growth trajectory since partnering with BGF in 2021. Initially a family-owned ERP software business, fulfilmentcrowd was transformed by CEO Lee Thompson and CTO Lee Gregson into a tech-driven logistics provider. BGF's original investment was targeted at enhancing the company's tech platform for omnichannel retailers, a move that has since resulted in a 20% increase in revenue. Both BGF and Palatine aim to further capitalize on fulfilmentcrowd’s innovative logistics solutions to boost international market entry.
Sectors
- E-commerce Logistics
- Private Equity
Geography
- United Kingdom – Fulfilmentcrowd is based in Lancashire, and Palatine, which is headquartered in Manchester, is involved in the investment.
- Global – Fulfilmentcrowd has expanded its operations globally, including new hubs in Sydney, Australia, and Dublin, Ireland.
Industry
- E-commerce Logistics – The article discusses fulfilmentcrowd, which provides logistics services specifically for online retailers, an essential part of the e-commerce ecosystem.
- Private Equity – The article revolves around investment and ownership changes involving private equity firms BGF and Palatine.
Financials
Participants
| Name | Role | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Growth Fund (BGF) | Exit and Reinvestor | Company | BGF initially invested in fulfilmentcrowd in 2021 and has exited and reinvested with a minority stake. |
| Palatine | Majority Investor | Company | A mid-market private equity firm that has made a majority investment in fulfilmentcrowd. |
| Fulfilmentcrowd | Target Company | Company | A Lancashire-based e-commerce logistics company expanding globally. |
| Lee Thompson | CEO | Person | CEO of fulfilmentcrowd since its transformation in 2016. |
| Lee Gregson | CTO | Person | Chief Technology Officer at fulfilmentcrowd. |
| Pinesh Mehta | Partner at BGF | Person | Led the original investment in fulfilmentcrowd at BGF. |
| Spencer Woods | Partner at BGF | Person | Represented BGF on fulfilmentcrowd's board. |