IK Partners bolsters Leadership team and forms advisory partnership with Wendel

IK Partners (“IK” or “the Company”), a leading European private equity firm, today announces the strengthening of its Leadership team with the addition of five Partners across its Paris and Amsterdam offices. Onne Tjerkstra and Xavier Lemonnier have been appointed Partners within the Investment Team, while Jakob Treffers, Jérôme Richard and David Varet have been appointed Partners within the Operations team.

With this year’s promotions, IK continues its track record of nurturing exceptional talent within the Company. Onne Tjerkstra becomes Partner within the Small Cap Investment team based in Amsterdam. He joined IK in 2019 and has worked on numerous transactions across the Benelux with specialist knowledge of the Business Services sector. Jakob Treffers joined IK Partners in 2020 and becomes Partner within the Operations team, based predominantly in Amsterdam. He draws on a wealth of operational experience, focused on commercial improvement and lean projects when supporting portfolio companies through the active ownership period of an investment.

The appointments of Xavier Lemonnier, Jérôme Richard and David Varet come as part of an advisory arrangement with Wendel. Wendel Group (“the Group”) is IK’s majority shareholder and one of Europe’s leading listed investment firms. In place since 1 January 2026, the new agreement sees IK advising Wendel’s direct private investment activities via the establishment of Wendel Principal Investments (“WPI”). WPI comprises existing and future upper-mid cap control investments in private companies that remain arranged and managed under Wendel’s control.

To ensure continuity in portfolio management, WPI will be supported by a new team within IK, comprising former Paris-based Wendel employees. The team will be led by Xavier Lemonnier who, prior to becoming Partner at IK, was a Managing Director at Wendel, having joined in 2018. He and the WPI team will be supported by Guillaume Veber, a Director within IK’s existing Mid Cap Investment team.

The arrangement will enable Wendel to benefit from the scale, resources and expertise of the IK Platform, supporting the acceleration of value creation, while maintaining full control of its existing and future direct investment portfolio. Initially, WPI will encompass six existing investments and is designed to support Wendel’s ability to identify, execute and manage upper-mid cap opportunities in accordance with its investment strategy.

For IK, the new arrangement presents several benefits, including increased growth and development opportunities as well as an enhanced co-investment offering for its longstanding investor base. These announcements follow a period of significant deal activity for IK, which saw it invest in 12 new companies and exit 5 since the start of 2025. During this period, the Company also held closes on funds totalling €5.75 billion in commitments, including: the €3.3 billion close of the IK X Fund, IK’s 10th Mid Cap fund, in April 2025; the €2.0 billion close of the IK Small Cap IV Fund in July 2025; and the €450 million close of the IK Partnership Fund III in October 2025.

Christopher Masek, CEO of IK Partners, said: “Firstly, I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate all of those joining the Leadership team here at IK. These appointments are in recognition of the excellent work being done to drive the growth of our Firm. We are also delighted to have the opportunity to support Wendel through this new advisory role which sees the formation of WPI and is another illustration of the mutual benefits of being part of the Group. We look forward to contributing our operational insight and institutional capabilities to help develop WPI’s existing and future portfolio.”

Xavier Lemonnier, Partner at IK Partners and Head of the WPI Strategy, added: “I am excited about the opportunity to lead the WPI team at IK as we look to continue growing our portfolio of upper-mid cap investments. With the added expertise of its Investment and Operations teams, coupled with the impressive track record the Company has of investing in successful businesses across Europe, we are now able to capitalise on an exciting pipeline of investment opportunities.”

For further questions, please contact:

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

ENDS

Onne Tjerkstra

• Onne Tjerkstra joined IK Partners in 2019 and was previously a Director in the Small Cap Investment team based in Amsterdam. Since joining, he has worked on numerous transactions across the Benelux and possesses specialist knowledge of the Business Services sector.
• Prior to joining IK, Onne worked for Credit-Suisse in London and AAC Capital in Amsterdam.
• He studied at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, from which he graduated with an MSc in Econometrics and Management Science, majoring in quantitative finance. 

Xavier Lemonnier

• Xavier Lemonnier joined Wendel in 2018 and was most recently Managing Director, based in Paris, co-responsible for direct investments in Europe.
• He is currently a Board member of Stahl (Netherlands) and Globeducate (Spain) and a member of the team managing the investment in Bureau Veritas (France).
• Prior to joining Wendel, Xavier worked for nine years at private equity firm BC Partners, in Paris and London, where he was involved in numerous investments across Europe, in a variety of sectors.
• Xavier started his career in 2008 at Merrill Lynch where he worked on cross-border M&A transactions involving French clients.
• Xavier is a graduate of École Polytechnique and ENSAE Paris.

Jakob Treffers

• Jakob Treffers joined IK Partners in 2020 and was previously a Director within the Operations team in Amsterdam. He draws on a wealth of operational experience, focused on commercial improvement and lean projects.
• Prior to joining IK, Jakob was Managing Director – Supply Chain at Dϋmmen Orange in Rotterdam, after a decade with McKinsey & Company.
• He holds an MBA from Columbia Business School in New York and an MSc in Physics from the University of Utrecht.

Jérôme Richard

• Jérôme Richard joined Wendel in 2019 as Co-Head of the Operating team and is a member of Scalian’s Supervisory Board. He was previously a member of the team managing the investment in Bureau Veritas as well as a Board Member of CPI, Constantia Flexibles and Cromology.
• Jérôme began his career at Boston Consulting Group during eight years in Paris and in New York, developing expertise in operational transformation and turnaround, mainly in the Healthcare and Industrial sectors. He was also the recruiting Director of the Paris office. In 2010, Jérôme joined Schneider Electric as a Vice President and took-on leadership positions in Purchasing followed by Sales and Business Development.
• In 2016, Jérôme was appointed CEO of John Paul (sold afterwards to Accor), a leading concierge services start-up supported by cutting edge technology to help brands reinventing customer experience.
• Jérôme graduated from CentraleSupélec in 2002 (Master of Sciences).

David Varet

• David Varet joined Wendel in 2021. He is a Board Member of Stahl and a member of the team managing the investment in ACAMS. He was previously a Board Member of Tarkett Participations.
• Prior to joining Wendel, David was the CEO of Homebox in Paris for eight years. He started his career as a Senior Technology Consultant in the IT Division of Capgemini. Following this, David worked for the group PSA for five years, first as an International Project Manager in Logistics and Distribution and then as a Worldwide Pricing Manager in Parts and Accessories. He then went on to work at Boston Consulting Group, a global management consulting firm which he left as a Principal.
• David is a graduate of École Polytechnique and École des Mines de Paris.