Star Capital SGR S.p.A., through the holding company Starlight Group, a subsidiary of Star IV Private Equity Fund, has acquired control of Ivela, a company active in the production and marketing of lighting fixtures made in Italy.

The shareholders of Ivela were assisted by Equita K Finance, partner of Clairfield International and part of Equita Group, as financial advisor, by ADVANT NCTM for the legal aspects and by Edoardo Della Cagnoletta for the tax aspects.

Star Capital has been assisted by DVR Capital as financial advisor, by Giliberti Triscornia e Associati for the legal aspects, by RDRA for the fiscal aspects, by Deloitte for the financial and business due diligence, by ERM for the environmental due diligence and by Confluence for the ESG due diligence.

The transaction was financed by Illimity Bank, assisted by the law firm Dentons, while Starlight was assisted by the company Essentia for the negotiation of the financing agreement.

Founded in 1986 and based in Liscate (near Milano), Ivela operates through two brands: Ialux, dedicated to the production, marketing and sale of lighting products for the high-end cruise ship sector, and Aria, dedicated to the design, production and sale of architectural lighting products for the retail, hospitality and residential sectors.
In 2021, Ivela will achieve revenues of over Euro 22 million, of which approximately 50% were generated abroad, with significant profitability.

The De Zorzi family will reinvest in Starlight Group with a minority share; Stefania, Mauro and Roberto De Zorzi will keep their management role in Ivela and will contribute to the future development of the Group. The founder Mario De Zorzi will remain in Ivela as Honorary President, offering his experience for this further growth phase.

The transaction is part of the broader project of aggregation of SMEs active in the lighting sector, launched by Star Capital in 2021 with the establishment of the holding company Starlight Group S.p.A. and the first acquisition of the company Elcom last May. The entrepreneurs of the acquired companies will also participate in the aggregation project, as minority shareholders and with a management role.

The project will bring together companies operating in the lighting technology sector that are complementary to each other and represent excellence in LED lighting in terms of the quality standards of the products and services offered to their customers.

The aim of Star Capital is to bring together the characteristics and strengths of the individual companies that will be part of the group and to create a larger company that can enjoy great reliability and reputation in the market, thanks also to the presence of an institutional investor in the capital. The aim of the project is to achieve the Group’s expansion in Italy and in the main European markets, leveraging also on the “Made in Italy” brand and on product and commercial synergies with the Group companies.