Platinum Equity's Italian Playbook Pays Off with De Wave Exit

When Platinum Equity agreed to acquire De Wave Group in 2019, the investment thesis centered on a highly regarded Italian business with strong technical capabilities and a leadership position in the global cruise industry. Few could have anticipated that within months the company would find itself navigating both the epicenter of Europe’s first COVID-19 outbreak and an unprecedented shutdown of the cruise market.

Now, with Platinum announcing an agreement to sell the Genoa-based marine interiors specialist, the investment stands as one of the firm’s notable European success stories and a case study in how it has approached investing in Italy. During Platinum’s ownership, De Wave more than doubled revenue and EBITDA, expanded its backlog to more than €1 billion and transformed itself into a broader, more integrated platform serving customers across the cruise and yacht industries.

For Platinum Equity Co-President Louis Samson, the outcome validates a European investment strategy built around local expertise and long-term relationships.

“We have never viewed Europe as a single market,” Samson said. “Europe is a collection of countries, cultures and business traditions. If you want to be successful in Italy, you need people who understand Italy. You need people who speak the language, know the culture and build relationships over time. We’ve been very deliberate in building our European team that way.”

That philosophy has shaped Platinum’s European expansion over the past decade. Rather than staffing the region with expatriates, the firm built a multinational team of more than 50 professionals with deep roots in markets including the UK, Italy, Spain, Germany, France and Benelux.

The deliberate approach has helped grow the firm’s European portfolio and paid dividends earlier this year in Spain when Platinum announced an agreement to sell Madrid-based environmental services company Urbaser in a transaction valued at approximately €5.6 billion.

The strategy has proven especially valuable in Italy, where founder-led and family-owned businesses remain at the heart of the economy.

“Business owners want to know who they are partnering with,” Samson said. “They want to know that you understand their company, their employees and the legacy they’ve built. Having people who can engage authentically in those conversations makes a huge difference.”

Filippo Rossi, an Italian national who helps lead Platinum’s investing activities in Italy, understands that dynamic firsthand.

“These companies are often deeply connected to their employees, communities and families,” Rossi said. “They’re looking for partners who can provide resources, operational expertise and global connectivity – including access to the United States – that help their businesses reach their next stage of growth while preserving the qualities that made them successful in the first place.”

“For many entrepreneurs, choosing a partner is about much more than valuation,” he added. “They want confidence that the culture of the business will be respected and that the next chapter will build on what they have created.”

Italy has become an important market for Platinum in Europe. In addition to De Wave, the firm has invested in wine producer Fantini Group and, more recently, pasta sauce and condiments maker Fratelli Polli. Both transactions involved businesses with strong family ownership traditions and significant opportunities for international growth.

The focus comes as Italy remains one of Europe’s most active markets for private equity investment. While deal volumes softened in 2025 amid broader economic uncertainty, overall transaction value increased, reflecting continued investor interest in Italian industrial, manufacturing and export-oriented businesses.

Fernando Goni, a Managing Director at Platinum Equity, said those characteristics continue to make Italy an attractive market for investors.

“We believe Italy has an extraordinary base of industrial and export-oriented businesses, many of them market leaders in highly specialized categories,” Goni said. “Those companies often have significant growth opportunities beyond their domestic markets, which creates a compelling fit with Platinum’s operational and global capabilities.”

De Wave is a strong example of that strategy in action.

“De Wave’s transformation helps illustrate the capabilities and relationships Platinum has built in Italy,” Rossi said. “We think it shows how local understanding and decisive, long-term support can help a strong Italian business achieve even greater scale, resilience and international reach.”

When the pandemic disrupted the cruise industry shortly after the acquisition closed, Platinum worked closely with management to stabilize the business, strengthen leadership and position the company for recovery. The firm elevated Riccardo Pompili to Group CEO, supported key management hires and continued investing in the business through a period when much of the industry was focused on survival. As cruise demand recovered, De Wave emerged stronger, with expanded capabilities, a larger international footprint and a backlog exceeding €1 billion.

As Platinum prepares to hand De Wave to its next owner, the transaction marks both the culmination of a seven-year transformation and a validation of the firm’s continuing commitment to Italy.

In addition to Platinum’s core strength with large pan-European corporate carve-outs, the firm sees no shortage of opportunities among Italy’s family-owned and entrepreneur-led businesses, many of which are navigating succession planning, pursuing international expansion or evaluating strategic partnerships. For Platinum, those situations represent precisely the kind of long-term relationships that the firm seeks in the country.

“There is tremendous talent, innovation and industrial know-how in Italy,” Samson said. “We’ve had the privilege of partnering with some outstanding businesses there, and we see De Wave as a great example of what can happen when strong management teams and committed investors work together. We remain very optimistic about Italy and expect it to be an important market for Platinum Equity for many years to come.”