Rockaway Capital selling its shares in Heureka Group and FAST ČR to EC Investments a PPF – while increasing share in Vivantis through purchase from PPF

A group of investors consisting of Rockaway Capital, EC Investments, and PPF purchased the Heureka Group on-line price comparison portal along with Mall.cz in 2015. They succeeded in turning Mall.cz into a leading e-commerce business, which resulted in the sale of the MALL Group and WE|DO to Poland’s Allegro in 2021, hitherto one of the largest transactions in Central and Eastern Europe. During the period of ownership by the group of investors, the Heureka Group become one of the strongest e-commerce players in Central and Eastern Europe, with a presence in nine countries. After purchasing Rockaway’s twenty-percent share, EC Investments and PPF are now Heureka’s sole shareholders.

In 2021 the same consortium of investors purchased a leading Central European wholesale and retail vendor of consumer electronics, FAST ČR. While Rockaway obtained a twenty percent of shares, PPF and EC Investments each purchased forty percent. The latter two have now become sole shareholders of FAST ČR.

“Strategic cooperation with the the EC Investments and PPF investment groups is still very important to us. Since 2015 we’ve conducted several successful joint acquisitions and I’m confident that in the future we will have further opportunities for cooperation,” says Rockaway Capital’s CEO and founder, Jakub Havrlant.

The Vivantis e-commerce business, headed by CEO Michal Špak, which includes the Vivantis.cz, Parfemy.cz, Hodinky.cz, and Prozdravi.cz e-shops, was acquired by Rockaway, PPF, and EC Investments in 2015. As with FAST ČR, EC Investments and PPF purchased forty percent each, while Rockaway had twenty percent. After purchasing PPF’s shares, Rockaway and EC Investments are now the sole shareholders.

Although Vivantis was among e-shops under the MALL Group structure, it was not part of the sale to the Allegro group in 2021. Under its investors’ consortium the group of Vivantis e-shops increased year-over-year revenues to CZK 1.6 billion.

“I’m very glad that we succeeded in finalizing the purchase of Vivantis shares owned by our partner, PPF. Our objective is to fully utilize the experience and skills we gained in the area of e-commerce to help Vivantis to expand further, including increasing its presence abroad,” adds Havrlant.

Rockaway Capital will continue to focus on investing in promising technologies and digital projects, including through its Rockaway Ventures division. Its goal is to continue in its position as leader in the area of e-commerce and digital transformation in the Central and Eastern Europe region. Its varied portfolio includes the Invia Group, Germany’s Bringmeister, the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, and the Euromedia Group.

About Rockaway Capital
the Rockaway Group, founded and managed by Jakub Havrlant, operates in 17 European countries primarily in the areas of e-commerce, e-travel, venture capital, fintech, media and blockchain – its portfolio includes the Bringmeister on-line supermarket, on-line travel agency Invia, the Gjirafa content and commerce platform, the Euromedia Group publishing house, tech startups such as Productboard, Spotawheel, and Campiri, and the Rockaway X blockchain fund.