On August 30, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that LC LegalProof had advised Zipper Studios on the sale of its business to Romanian software services provider Fortech. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Radu Benga, Partner & Strategy Manager at Zipper Studios, to learn more about the sale.
CEEIHM: Tell us a bit about Zipper Studios.
Benga: Zipper Studios is a software development company that started in 2017 with a focus on product development. One of our main objectives was to get involved in the process of helping clients define what their software product is, in terms of features and user experience based on their business objectives, and to find the most effective ways to develop that product and bring it to market. From the beginning, we focused on building a team with like-minded people, that shared our values for high-quality work and trust. We were really fortunate to be able to find people that shared our passion and values and we will always appreciate the effort each team member has put in helping us build and grow the company.
CEEIHM: What was the driving force behind the sale?
Benga: There was a multitude of factors behind our decision but the most important ones were related to the fact that we saw that as we grew, we had to allocate more and more time for operational tasks, internal processes, accounting, etc., tasks that took from the time that we wanted to allocate to our team and our clients. Based on this and a few other factors, we decided that we want to focus our time on our team and clients and not on the operational side, so we looked for a partner that already had everything set in place on the operational side and that also had the resources that we believed were needed so that our team could continue to develop their career path and also take advantage of new opportunities.
CEEIHM: Did you initiate the sell or were you approached by Fortech? If the former, how did you identify Fortech as the ideal seller? If the latter, what do you believe made Zipper Studios particularly attractive?
Benga: We have been working with Fortech for about two years, and just before the pandemic, we started discussions about how we can expand the partnership, but then the pandemic hit and we put those discussions on hold. This year we reached out to Fortech because they were our closest partners and we had really great chemistry with the team from Fortech that we collaborated with. We had a few other discussions with other interesting companies, but when we had to make a decision, we believed that we had the best fit with Fortech's way of working and the values that they had, especially when it came to their team.
CEEIHM: What, in your view, was the most complex aspect of the deal?
Benga: For sure it was the legal side, making sure that everything was covered and that all aspects of the law have been taken into consideration and respected. There were a lot of discussions and both sides had to invest a lot of time and as we advanced in our discussions, more and more things appeared that we could not anticipate from the beginning.
But all in all, we were really fortunate to have our partner LC LegalProof on our side and also the Fortech lawyers, as their experience made everything run smoother.
CEEIHM: Why did you pick LC LegalProof as your advisors on this sale?
Benga: LC LegalProof was recommended to me by one of my mentors so that was a first step in building the trust needed with a potential partner and after that, everything just connected when we had our first discussions with Alex Lefter, a Partner at LC Legal Proof. Alex really showed that he had the knowledge and expertise that we were looking for and he was always available and allocated the needed time to make sure that we understood things, every step of the way, and he did this in a very professional manner.
We are really happy that we choose to work with Alex and his team, as they had a key contribution to the success of this deal.
