Intera Partners-backed vehicle-damage services provider Suvia Group has acquired AutoRepairGroup from PE firm Standard Investment.
Headquartered in Heverlee, AutoRepairGroup (ARG) is Belgium’s largest independent multi-brand vehicle body repair group, operating 14 workshops and employing more than 450 professionals to complete over 45,000 repairs annually. The group is renowned for its specialised expertise in electric vehicle and battery repairs, aluminium work and ADAS calibration, and is on track to generate more than €80 million in revenue in 2026, with an EBITDA margin of around 10 percent.
“AutoRepairGroup is an excellent strategic fit for Suvia,” shares the CEO of the international auto damage services and damage management group of experts, Jens Jensen. “We share the same commitment to quality, operational efficiency, strong local teams and effortless customer experience.”
He explains that Suvia brings extensive experience in nationwide insurance partnerships and integrated claims services, while ARG has built leading expertise in electric vehicles, ADAS and modern repair technology. “Together, we have a strong platform for responsible and profitable growth.”
Before the acquisition, Suvia comprised 66 workshops, employed more than 600 professionals and completed over 80,000 repairs annually. Under the agreement, ARG will maintain its existing brand, local management team and operational structure, while increasing cooperation and sharing best practices in procurement, technology and competence development with Suvia. “Our employees, customers and partners can rely on the same local teams and service, now supported by the capabilities of a larger international group,” assures ARG CEO Dieter Wemel.
Following the transaction, Suvia Group comprises 80 workshops and approximately 1,100 employees across Finland and Belgium. “Joining Suvia Group gives AutoRepairGroup an industrial partner that understands our business and shares our ambition to develop it further,” Dieter says, adding that this combination is built on growth, continuity and mutual learning.
“When we invested in Suvia in March, one of our main goals was to internationalise the group,” elaborates Intera Partners’ Iikka Moilanen.
“We are therefore very excited and happy to be partnering with AutoRepairGroup, a Belgian leader that reflects similar values and culture as Suvia in Finland.”
With its current portfolio including Finland’s largest collision repair network InCar, vehicle-damage inspection and assessment specialist Suomen Vahinkotarkastus SVT, as well as automotive spare parts specialist AutoBodyParts stores, the ARG transaction marks the group’s first foothold outside Finland.
“Strong international groups are built on local expertise, shared ambition, and the strengths of both businesses,” notes Jens. “We are building a group where strong local companies can learn from one another and grow together.”
Collective growth and advisory
Speaking of learning from one another, Dieter thanks Standard Investment for the five years of partnership during which ARG grew.
Marijn van den Berg, an investment director at the PE firm, expresses his pride, too: “A fantastic result and one of the best exits in our history – a great example of the company’s hands-on approach to value creation.”
EY-Parthenon’s Philippe Vandenkerchove (together with his team) advised Standard Investment on the financial and tax aspects of the deal and has followed the ARG journey for more than a decade across multiple ownership cycles, including its acquisition by Carglass in 2016 and its subsequent divestment in 2021. “Beyond the transaction itself, it’s rewarding to witness the continued development of the business, its management team and its position as a leading player in the Belgian auto repair market, and the value created along the way,” he comments.
The rest of Standard Investment’s advisors for this deal included Kumulus Partners from an M&A perspective, with Henk Vivile as team lead, joined by Jan-Baptist Polfliet, Jarne Van Tongel and Dries De Coninck; Stibbe on a legal front, with Stefan Odeurs, Pieter van Daele and Laura Hofströssler; as well as Roland Berger on CDD aspects, with Jelle Heyvaert, Astrid Böhlke and Benjamin Verhelst.
Loyens & Loeff acted as Belgian legal counsel to Intera Partners and Suvia Group. “The acquisition was completed following a highly competitive auction process and required close coordination across multiple practice areas,” the firm notes in a statement.
Hannes Snellman also joined Suvia Group’s advisory team, including Erik Stenman, Henri Ruotsalainen and Ella Sivonen on M&A aspects, and Antti Nyberg, Ruusa Jumppanen and Viivi Miettinen on financial factors.
