Shearman & Sterling advised global investment firm Carlyle on its acquisition of a majority stake in Groupe Lacour, a leading French software provider for the automotive after-sales value chain.

Founded in 1985 and headquartered in Saint-Doulchard, France, Lacour is a leading provider of software solutions with a comprehensive suite of products supporting vehicle repair and maintenance including document management systems, costing solutions, and parts databases. Lacour has over 300 employees and a diversified customer base of over 6,000 clients comprising of independent automotive repair shops and repair shop networks, car dealerships, glazers, claim adjusters, insurers, and fleet managers.

The Carlyle Europe Technology Partners platform aims to support Lacour’s growth as a leading one-stop-shop for the automotive after-sales value chain with the objective of building a category leader at the forefront of innovation. The platform will partner with management to further penetrate existing and new market segments, broaden its software suite and complementary product offering, build on Lacour’s R&D initiatives including AI modules and a new SaaS delivery model through products such as Iris and Mosaic, capture new cross-selling and up-selling opportunities, enhance commercial best practice across the group, and focus on international expansion predominantly in Europe.

The Team