Houlihan Lokey Advises BALDUR-Garten

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that the shareholders of BALDUR-Garten, the leading direct-to-consumer online retail specialist for live plants, have agreed to sell a significant majority stake of their holdings in the company to Paragon Partners (Paragon).

BALDUR-Garten is Germany’s leading direct-to-consumer online retail specialist for garden plants. Based in Bensheim, the company operates a fully integrated e-commerce model with its own state-of-the-art warehousing, efficient logistics, reliable customer service, and creative content production. At peak times, BALDUR-Garten employs more than 500 highly motivated staff at its headquarters. The product range comprises over 1,500 items—from outdoor and indoor plants to flower bulbs, seeds, fertilisers, and garden accessories—with a special focus on botanical rarities and novelties.

Paragon was founded in 2004 and is one of Europe’s leading private equity firms. Paragon works closely with its portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth and operational excellence, with its portfolio covering various industries across 12 companies. Paragon has already supported a large number of e-commerce companies in their organic and inorganic growth.

With more than 1 million customers per year, BALDUR-Garten is the online leader in the German-speaking market. The combination of an exclusive product selection, excellent quality, and reliable delivery makes BALDUR-Garten the go-to address for hobby gardeners and plant lovers. “We are delighted to have found a long-term partner in Paragon Partners who recognises BALDUR’s potential, shares the values of our company and our employees, and supports us in implementing our growth strategy,” said Bernd Koch, Managing Partner of BALDUR-Garten. “It was particularly important to me to find a partner who shares our holistic approach and our passion for garden products.”

“With our investment in BALDUR-Garten, we are partnering with a digitally oriented medium-sized company with an excellent market position,” said Marco Attolini, Senior Partner at Paragon. “BALDUR is the clear number one in online plant retail in the DACH region—a market that will continue to benefit from increasing online penetration.”

Christian Bettinger, Partner at Paragon, added: “We look forward to working with the experienced management team led by Mr. Koch, Ms. Berge, and Mr. Matthes and to shaping the next chapter of BALDUR together. Paragon will actively support BALDUR in implementing its growth strategy, particularly in its further pan-European expansion and dedicated acquisitions, as a sparring partner and investor.”

Houlihan Lokey acted as the exclusive financial advisor to BALDUR-Garten and its shareholders, leading process management, negotiations, and transaction execution. This transaction further demonstrates the firm’s leading position within the digital consumer platforms space globally and within e-commerce in particular.

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