DTK Group sold to NTG Nordic Transport Group

Transaction

Sell-side

€83m

Role

Adviser to Blue Equity and the owners on the sale of DTK Group to NTG Nordic Transport Group

Sector

Business Services

Region

Denmark

We have advised the owners of DTK Group (DTK), comprising the founders, management, and private equity firm Blue Equity, on its sale to NTG Nordic Transport Group (NTG).

Headquartered in Padborg, Denmark, DTK is a full-service, end-to-end freight forwarder specialising in full and part-load general cargo and temperature-controlled road transportation. In addition, DTK offers warehousing and logistic solutions to a range of long-standing customers. DTK operates seven additional sites across Denmark, Germany, and the UK and employs around 195 employees.

NTG is a global freight-forwarding company offering customised transport solutions by road, rail, air, and ocean. With approximately 3,000 dedicated employees across more than 25 countries, NTG serves customers worldwide.

The acquisition of DTK will significantly strengthen NTG’s market position in the Nordics by expanding its scale within road freight forwarding. The general cargo and warehousing activities of DTK will cooperate with NTG Road A/S, while DTK’s temperature-controlled transportation business will continue to operate independently with the support of NTG. Both companies adopt a decentralised business model with a strong focus on local empowerment across its locations, solidifying a strong strategic match between DTK and NTG.

Selling your business is a long and often arduous process, especially when it comprises, among others, several subsidiaries. As a business owner, it is crucial to be able to visualise the end and ensure that the process is as structured as possible so you can focus on your business. The Clearwater team has put up with more than a little from our side, especially when my Southern Jutland temper has been put to the test, but they have steered the process with a steady hand all the way through, hanging in day and night. With NTG, we have found a setup that aligns with where we are coming from and that suits us well across many parameters.
Steen Sørensen, CEO and Co-owner, DTK Group

This is the second time we have worked with Clearwater as our adviser – first in 2020, when we completed a transaction and sold a share to Blue Equity, and now again with the sale to NTG, Nordisk Transport Group. Once again, it has been a fantastic process marked by a strong focus on everyone in our team, this time also consisting of Blue Equity and the minority owners. It requires structured communication to keep track of all the threads, and we felt secure all the way. My husband and I founded DTK back in 1991, and now the time has come for us to step away entirely. Being actively in the process has led to a much better exit for us, and now we can calmly send ‘our child’ on its future journey with NTG.
Susanne Provstgaard, Co-owner and member of the board, DTK Group

It has been impressive to see how DTK has grown and developed in its partnership with Blue Equity – a partnership that we are very proud to have co-facilitated back in 2020. And we are proud to be the ones to lead DTK further on their journey. We are honored with the trust that we have been given by DTK’s founders and management and by Blue Equity to realise such a substantial exit in a market where many PEs are fighting to achieve exactly that. Congratulations to all parties.
Carsten Rydahl, Partner, Clearwater