By Oscar Woods 
The KLAR Partners and Oleter Group platform strategy is one of the more deliberate build-outs happening in Northern European private equity right now. Here is what is actually driving it.
When KLAR Partners Limited announced its investment in Oleter Group in September 2021, it was more than a standard private equity buyout. It was the opening move in a deliberate multi-year platform strategy aimed at making Oleter the dominant property damage restoration provider across Northern Europe.
So what does that actually look like in practice? And why is the KLAR Partners / Oleter Group platform strategy drawing attention from investors and industry watchers across the Nordics?
SEK 2B Oleter Group revenues at entry (2020)
~1,700 employees across 90+ locations
€1.5B total KLAR capital raised across Fund I & II
Table of Contents
Who Is KLAR Partners, and Why Oleter?
KLAR Partners Limited is a London-headquartered European private equity firm. Its investment focus sits specifically in business services and industrial technology companies with annual revenues between EUR 50 million and EUR 500 million, based in the Nordics, Benelux, or DACH regions.
The firm raised its debut fund at a €600 million hard cap before quickly following with Fund II at €870 million, a 40 percent increase that reflected strong institutional confidence. Combined, KLAR has now raised €1.5 billion since inception.
Oleter Group was already a recognised leader in property damage restoration across Sweden and Norway before KLAR came in. The group brings together several specialist businesses under one roof:
- Ocab — dehumidification and decontamination services in Sweden
- Frøiland Bygg Skade (FBS) — property damage restoration across Norway
- NHS, MCM Relining and S-Pipe — underground infrastructure and relining services
- Planea — property development consulting
Fires, floods, water leaks, structural damage. These are not optional problems. They happen regardless of economic cycles, which is precisely what makes this sector attractive to a firm like KLAR.
“Our investment in the Oleter Group is at the very core of KLAR’s expertise. The group is active in a highly attractive market and has a clear sustainability profile which forms a solid foundation on which we can build the next growth chapter of the business.”Petter Darin, KLAR Team Leader — PR Newswire, September 2021
The Platform Strategy: Three Pillars
KLAR’s approach with Oleter is not about squeezing margins or stripping assets. The firm describes itself as a growth partner, and the Oleter playbook reflects that in three distinct ways.
Organic Growth
Strengthening existing operations, improving scheduling and field service systems, and extending service capacity within markets where Oleter already holds strong positions.
Acquisition-Led Expansion
Acquiring complementary regional operators to extend geographic coverage and add specialist capabilities, particularly beyond Sweden and Norway.
Operational Consolidation
Centralising back-office functions like billing, HR, and reporting while keeping local teams intact and customer-facing operations unchanged.
Geographic Scale
Building a Nordic-wide footprint that can serve insurance companies and large property owners who need consistent cross-border coverage.
How the Acquisitions Have Unfolded
The timeline of moves since KLAR’s initial investment gives a clearer picture of how the platform strategy has been executed step by step.
September 2021
KLAR Partners invests in Oleter Group. Entry point is SEK 2 billion in revenues, approximately 1,700 employees across 90 locations in Sweden and Norway.
May 2022
Swoosh acquisition and UIM carve-out. KLAR acquires Swoosh, a Swedish sewer cleaning and underground infrastructure maintenance company. Oleter’s own UIM activities are merged into it, creating a combined group with roughly SEK 500 million in revenues operating under the Swoosh name.
2023 onward
Denmark expansion via Trinava. Oleter Group acquires Trinava Skadeservice Danmark A/S, then consolidates further Danish operations under ISV/Trinava Industri og Skadeservice, extending the platform’s nationwide damage service strategy into Denmark.
Why the Nordic PDR Market Makes Sense
Property damage restoration is structurally different from many other services businesses. Demand is not discretionary. A water-damaged apartment block does not wait for insurance companies to decide if now is a good time to act. This gives the sector a degree of revenue predictability that makes it easier to model and easier to finance.
Before consolidation, the Nordic PDR market was made up largely of smaller local operators. They were skilled but limited in their ability to serve large-scale clients like national insurers or property owners with assets across multiple countries. Oleter, backed by KLAR’s capital and network, is positioned to fill that gap.
Roles Are Clearly Separated
One of the more notable aspects of the KLAR Partners / Oleter Group platform strategy is the clarity in how responsibilities are divided. KLAR focuses on capital allocation, financial oversight, and geographic strategy. Oleter’s management runs day-to-day operations. Local teams continue to serve their existing customers without disruption.
This structure matters because PDR is fundamentally a local, trust-based service. Customers call Oleter in a moment of stress. Keeping local identity and service quality intact while centralising the things that benefit from scale, procurement, technology, HR, is the approach KLAR has consistently applied across its portfolio.
What This Means for the Broader Market
The KLAR Partners and Oleter Group build-out is part of a broader consolidation trend across Northern European business services. Fragmented markets with recession-resistant demand profiles, established customer relationships, and room for operational improvement are exactly the kind of targets that mid-market private equity firms are actively prioritising right now.
For Oleter’s customers, primarily insurance companies, property managers, and homeowners, the practical effect is a wider service network and more standardised response capabilities. For the smaller regional operators considering joining a group like this, the question is whether the benefits of centralised support and capital outweigh the loss of independence.
Based on the acquisitions KLAR has announced so far, the pipeline of potential targets across Denmark, Finland, and wider Scandinavia suggests this platform is still in active growth mode, with no indication the strategy has reached its endpoint.