HCM Handwerk Capital Management

About HCM Handwerk Capital Management

HCM Handwerk Capital Management GmbH and Co. KG is a German specialist investment company providing equity capital to medium-sized and family-owned companies, headquartered at Heideweg 29a in Quickborn, northern Germany. The firm was founded in 2006 by Business Angel Franco Ottavio Mathias, who serves as Managing Director. The company sits within the broader HCM Handwerk Consult Mittelstandsberatung group covering corporate advisory services for German Mittelstand companies. Assets under management are not publicly disclosed in aggregate. The structure is a specialised investment company channelling capital through silent partnerships and open partnerships rather than through closed-end limited partner fund vehicles, working alongside private investors, business angels and family offices to generate economic equity capital for small enterprises. The firm has been investing in small and medium enterprises since 2006 and operates as a BVK (German private equity association) member. There are no formally numbered fund vintages; capital is deployed through partnership structures alongside co-investors.

Investment thesis

HCM Handwerk Capital Management pursues a German Mittelstand specialty strategy focused on small enterprises with up to €30 million revenue, with industry-independent focus and adequate and flexible financing alternatives through silent partnership and open partnership structures. Sector focus covers manufacturing including production and industry, construction and trades, wholesale and retail trade, various services and forwarding and logistics, reflecting the broad Mittelstand opportunity set in northern Germany. Geographic scope is Germany-primary with the Quickborn northern-Germany base anchoring deal-sourcing across the Hamburg metropolitan region and broader DACH catchment. Typical economic equity capital ranges from €10,000 to €150,000 per company, pooled together with multiple investments across the partnership co-investor base. The firm targets venture capital provider total returns of 15 to 20 percent per annum, consisting of fixed interest of approximately 12 percent and a share of profits from expected average annual earnings. The capital base combines HCM own commitments with parallel co-investments from private investors, business angels and family offices. Value creation rests on the parent group Mittelstand corporate advisory expertise providing operational and strategic support to portfolio companies.

Recent activity

HCM continues to deploy capital across the German Mittelstand SME universe spanning manufacturing, construction, trades, wholesale and retail, services, and forwarding and logistics. Recent investment activity includes German small enterprises in manufacturing and industrial services. The platform leverages the parent Handwerk Consult Mittelstandsberatung corporate advisory practice to provide operational support to portfolio holdings alongside the equity capital injection. The specialty silent and open partnership structures provide founder-friendly financing alternatives that compete with classical mid-market private equity by offering flexibility on tenor, exit pressure and ownership structure. Detailed buyer names and multiple data available on Pro at €49/month.