Perseus Group: H1 2026 in Review
The first half of 2026 has kept us busy across the group. We welcomed two new businesses to our portfolio, hit to road to meet founders around the world, and leaned into AI.
Here’s a look back at the first six months of the year!
Acquisitions Completed
We completed two acquisitions in the first half of the year, expanding our footprint in dealership software.
In March, we completed the purchase of IronHQ, a quoting, inventory management, and CRM solution serving the agriculture and construction equipment dealership market.
In April, we completed the purchase of Starkwood Media Group, marking our 12th acquisition in dealership software. Founded in 1999, Starkwood brings more than 25 years of expertise in website design and digital solutions for car, van, motorbike, and leisure vehicle dealers across the United Kingdom.
On the Road with Founders
Some of the most valuable time we spent this year was on the road. Across the first half of 2026, members of our team travelled around the world to sit down with founders, learn about their businesses firsthand, and better understand what makes each one unique.
From New York, Orlando, Providence, and Boston to several cities across Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, these conversations gave us a deeper appreciation for the entrepreneurs building exceptional businesses in markets around the world. We look forward to keeping that momentum going in H2.
Experimenting with AI
We’ve continued to embrace AI and created space to share what’s working through a series of accelerators and roundtables.
In our first AI roundtable of the year, Pranav Sood, General Manager of Charter Software, led a working session sharing how his team used AI tools to refresh a legacy customer portal UI in a matter of days, before moving on to backend changes and deeper product integration.
Insights from subsequent roundtables include:
- Start with the front end: leading with UI changes lowers the stakes and shortens the feedback loop
- Show, don’t tell, in QA: a quick screenshot of what looks wrong communicates faster than a written description, cutting down the back-and-forth
- Match the tool to the task: no single tool does everything well — Pranav’s team plans in one tool and builds in another, creating a workflow that’s both structured and fast.
Celebrating Along the Way
Amid the deals and the travel, we made time to celebrate our people and milestones.
This year we marked the retirement of Steve Latham, who is stepping into a well-earned retirement after 36 years of building teams, products, and lasting relationships. From his early days writing code to leading a global portfolio, Steve brought integrity, curiosity, and a steady hand to every challenge.
We also celebrated five years since R.O. Writer joined our group. When we acquired the business in 2021, our number one priority was to protect and strengthen the long-standing customer relationships that define the R.O. Writer platform. Five years on, that commitment remains at the center of everything we do; our thanks go to the automotive shops and franchise partners who trust the platform every day.
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