Rob Henderson
Investment Director
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- Full Name
- Robert ("Rob") Henderson
- Title
- Investment Director (at Root Capital LLP); now Principal at Kester Capital
- Firm
- Root Capital LLP (now ScaleUp Capital) — currently Kester Capital
- Firm Type
- Lower-mid-market / "operational" private equity (not angel investing, despite the stub classification)
- Investment Stage
- Established, profitable SMEs — buyouts, growth capital, founder exits and carve-outs (not seed-stage angel)
- Check Size
- Root Capital historically invested ~£1–6m; the rebranded ScaleUp Capital deploys ~£3–20m per deal
- Target Company Profile
- Established, growing companies, broadly £2–50m revenue (Root: £5–50m turnover; ScaleUp: £2–15m revenue), including management buyouts and corporate carve-outs
- Sector Focus
- B2B software, technology, business services and media (also healthcare/financial services at Kester)
- Geographic Focus
- United Kingdom
- Location
- London, UK
Background
Rob Henderson is a UK private equity investor who served as Investment Director at Root Capital LLP, a London-based lower-mid-market private equity firm focused on the UK technology, business services and media sectors. Root Capital positioned itself as an "operational" investor — providing capital alongside hands-on operating support — typically backing established, growing companies rather than early-stage startups. The firm has since rebranded as ScaleUp Capital (the former rootcapital.co.uk domain now redirects to scaleupcapital.com), and today targets B2B software, services and media businesses with revenues of roughly £2–15m, deploying £3–20m per investment through partial and full buyouts.
Henderson qualified as a chartered accountant (ACA) during four years at KPMG, where he worked in the corporate finance and restructuring teams. He then spent around six years in private equity and venture capital across Albion Capital (as an investment manager) and Root Capital, building expertise in financial modelling, M&A and growth investing in lower-mid-market UK companies.
In July 2021 he joined Kester Capital, a sector-focused UK private equity firm, as Vice President, and was promoted to Principal in October 2023. Kester invests in UK businesses across healthcare, business and financial services, media and technology, and "niche consumer" sectors. He remains based in London.
It is worth flagging that the original stub data classified Henderson as an "Angel Investor" focused on "Seed Round" deals — this does not match the public record. Both Root Capital and Kester Capital are institutional private equity firms backing established, revenue-generating companies, not seed-stage angel vehicles.
Investment Thesis & Focus
- Stage: Established, profitable lower-mid-market companies — management buyouts, founder exits/liquidity, growth capital and corporate carve-outs. Not seed or pre-seed.
- Sectors: B2B software, technology, business services and media (Root Capital / ScaleUp); also healthcare and financial services at Kester Capital.
- Check size: Historically ~£1–6m at Root Capital; ~£3–20m at the rebranded ScaleUp Capital.
- Approach: "Operational" private equity — providing dedicated operating resource and expert support alongside capital. ScaleUp's stated thesis: *"We partner with established, growing companies with revenues of £2m–£15m and provide dedicated resource, expert support, and capital to accelerate their growth, helping them scale to the next level."*
- Geography: UK-focused.
Notable Investments
- Public sources do not attribute specific named deals to Rob Henderson individually during his time at Root Capital, Albion Capital, or Kester Capital. He operated as a deal-team investor (Investment Director / VP / Principal) rather than a named fund principal on press-released transactions.
- Firm context (Root Capital / ScaleUp Capital): lower-mid-market buyouts and growth investments in UK B2B software, services and media companies (£5–50m turnover historically), with the firm citing >6x average return on investment across 20 years and ~4x revenue growth from entry to exit.
- Firm context (Kester Capital): sector-focused UK buyouts and growth investments in healthcare, business/financial services, media and technology.
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