Valueworks – social housing procurement

Private equity-backed Valueworks is a SaaS provider of e-procurement and B2B marketplaces, specifically focused on the UK social housing and private construction sectors.

The ten-year old company has been growing at a rapid rate and was acquired by PE provider Hg Capital in October 2012. Elizabeth Sipiere, formerly Microgen’s divisional MD for EMEA and APAC, joined to head up the business during the buy-out. Founders Jeff Dandridge and Iain Walsh however, who launched Valueworks after leaving CPG giant Danone, are still heavily involved providing strategy and commercial leadership. Under this new management, Valueworks is now targeting its next phase of growth.

What impressed us most about Valueworks is its focus. In a market where there are many generic e-procurement providers focused on indirect procurement of items such as consumables and office supplies, Valueworks’ detailed knowledge of the UK social housing and construction markets helps differentiate it, enabling it to source more strategic items for its clients, such as building materials and other trade items incorporating regional suppliers. Another plus is Valueworks’ platform technology, which the company has built from the ground up, using both in house and offshore resources, offering catalogue management, an e-marketplace and a purchase to pay back end all delivered via the cloud.

Challenges however do lie ahead. Meeting the demands of its new PE owners to expand and broaden scope will need to be done sensibly without losing sight of its core ‘knitting’. If Valueworks gets this right, the future looks bright.

Posted by John O'Brien at '08:41' - Tagged: saas   eprocurement