Detailed Description of Portfolio Companies of Fund I
Ekitan & Co., Ltd.
| Features | Early-comers of train route search services with its origin as in- house venture of Toshiba and owns unique train route search engine as core technology which is now upgraded to “point to point” route search engine by combining it with on-foot route search function. Earns stable subscription charges from “train route search services via mobile phones” and tries to expand into Application Service Provider services for the sites of the customers and “train route search services via PCs” charging advertisement fees. Ranks high in the route search segment with 0.9 million subscribers, 3 million visitors a month for their mobile and PC site and over 100 corporate sites. |
|---|---|
| Investment Pattern | Carve-out from Toshiba by MBO |
| Investment Theme | Support the management in MBO who wish to own and manage the company as a business independent from Toshiba which considered this type of business as non-core, and achieve higher growth of existing “train route search services via mobile phones” by reviewing and redesigning marketing strategies and realizing the potential of their unique technologies, solid customer base and recognition as leading player. |
| Date of Exit | June 2014 |
| Exit Pattern | Sale through IPO and other subsequent trades on Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Mothers market, combined with partial sales to business partners(INCREMENT P CORPORATION, FUJI MEDIA HOLDINGS INC, CE Holdings Co.,Ltd.） |
| Exit Story | Through implementation of its mid-term business plan (the first 100 day plan) formulated in collaboration with Polaris, the company re-organized its marketing strategies and methods so that it succeeded in doubling operating profit since the investment and enabling Polaris to realize investment return partially by IPO. Polaris also arranged partial sales to business partners just after the investment, in the pre-IPO process, and at the post-IPO stage, which contributed to finding long-term/strategic shareholders of the company, as well as encouraged its new business launch. |
