AniCura was created in November 2011 when Fidelio enabled the merger between Regiondjursjukhuset i Stockholm, Västra Djursjukhuset i Göteborg och Falu Djursjukhus (three leading veterinary hospitals in Sweden). The merger was the first of its kind in the Nordic region and created a leader in veterinary care in Sweden. Fidelio Capital was attracted by a fragmented market with strong underlying growth and a great potential for professionalisation. Between 2011 and 2014 Fidelio acquired in total 60 hospitals and clinics in Sweden, Norway and Denmark. The fast pace of acquisitions was enabled by the development of a highly efficient acquisition process in combination with the newly recruited top management team (led by CEO Peter Dahlberg who joined AniCura in April 2012) building up a strong corporate infrastructure in order to support a high growth and enabling the expansion into new geographies. The merger of clinics and hospitals within AniCura enabled increased professionalisation through (inter alia): knowledge sharing between clinics, centrialised corporate functions, more efficient care processes and increased investments in advanced equipment.

With a significant focus on coordinated education efforts and an increased specialisation opportunities for the staff, AniCura rapidly became an attractive workplace for both veterinarians and nurses. That way, for every year since inception the organic growth of AniCura’s clinics outpaced the growth of the market. In August 2014, Fidelio divested part of its holding in AniCura to Nordic Capital, which became the new majority shareholder. Fidelio remained as a significant shareholder and has been continuously active in the Group’s development through, among other things, board representation and assistance with add-on acquisitions. In June 2018, Fidelio and Nordic Capital agreed to sell AniCura to Mars Petcare, a family owned and leading player in animal health and veterinary medicine. The sale represents the first time Fidelio fully divested a shareholding in one of its investments. The deal was awarded the price “the Nordic deal of the year” at the Real Deal Private Equity Award in London 2019. During Fidelio Capital’s seven-year ownership period, Fidelio helped AniCura to grow 16-fold from SEK 260m in 2011 to SEK 4,200m in 2018. At the same period the Group increased its number of clinics from 5 to over 200 and its employees from 250 to 4,000. AniCura is today present in nine countries and has revenues of around SEK 5 billion.