The management team of e-mail media company Rocketseed SA has acquired a majority stake in the company.
This was announced by John Cooper, chairman of London-based Rocketseed Group.
Rocketseed was started by South African entrepreneurs in 2002. Cooper became involved with Rocketseed in SA in 2005 as non-executive chairman. He subsequently acquired control of the group from the founder shareholders in 2007.
He has been involved in the expansion of the group out of SA, initially into UK, and subsequently into Australia and the US.
Rocketseed offers e-mail marketing products - RocketSeed, RocketMailer, RocketRespond and RocketLink. RocketSeed is the core product, a Web-based service that provides control for targeted and tracked digital marketing campaigns and e-mail signatures through corporate e-mail.
Cooper says the transfer of majority ownership to the management team, led by chief executive Tess Sulaman, was in part recognition of the value they added to the business over the years.
"Sulaman and her team have presided over the company's most remarkable growth phase," Cooper says.
He adds this initiative will see Rocketseed SA becoming a black-owned and -managed business. "Unlike many BEE transactions that have been concluded in South Africa, this deal is unique in that the new shareholders' equity will be unencumbered and debt-free.
"Shareholders will be able to exercise their rights fully and immediately realise the economic benefits that will accrue to them as a result of this transaction," adds Cooper.
Sulaman says she is delighted with the decision by the chairman to put his faith and trust in management in the manner that he has done.
"It is not often that BEE transactions are concluded in this fashion and we are very fortunate to have a partner like John who is willing to allow us the latitude to run the business with a fair degree of independence from the rest of the group," says Sulaman.
"Rocketseed South Africa will continue to work closely with the other entities around the world, sharing intellectual capital and client syndication, among other collaborative efforts, for the benefit of all stakeholders," she adds.
"This is an exciting period in the growth of Rocketseed SA, and a home-coming for one of South Africa's popular brands in the ICT sector," concludes Sulaman.
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