Mamma Mia!

On 6 April 1974 ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Waterloo”. The group became known throughout Europe overnight and shortly thereafter the rest of the world also had the group’s songs on their lips. 25 years later to the day on 6 April 1999, Mamma Mia! the musical opened its doors at the Prince Edward Theatre in London’s West End theatre district. And success was not long in coming. Since then, London has been followed by cities like New York, Osaka, Toronto, Stuttgart and Madrid. The musical has also visited Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong.

For the brains behind the musical success, British producer Judy Craymer, the path has been far from straightforward. Once she had convinced Björn and Benny, neither of whom wanted to make a musical about their lives or a tribute show about themselves (the solution was a completely rewritten story where ABBA’s lyrics were the basis for moving the storyline forward), there remained one more nut to crack: Funding.

Craymer invested everything she had in the idea, but raising the remaining capital was not easy. The first potential financiers did not really see the potential of the idea. In the end, the people who were sold by the idea were ABBA’s record company Polygram (now Universal) and private equity firm SEB Venture Capital. SEB already had a relationship with Björn and Benny through another musical, Kristina från Dufvemåla. Together, Universal and SEB Venture Capital made the bulk of the initial capital of approximately SEK 35 million available for the first production in London. The private equity company then invested in all the productions performed in English (nine).

SEB Venture Capital normally invests in companies that want to grow and need capital. Investing in a musical may seem both unusual and daring, but for Hans Engblom, Senior Investment Manager at SEB Venture Capital, there were good reasons.

“It was a different project from our perspective, but nonetheless our normal investment criteria were applicable.”

As normal investment criteria Engblom mentions that – in addition to the people behind the project, who are usually the most important factor- it was a unique product. It was the first time someone had come up with a similar concept, namely to build a new story around music that had already sold several hundred million copies globally. Furthermore, the rights to the music were protected and – above all – it was a scalable project:

“This is essential from an investment perspective. It was an idea that could be run anywhere. The music was readily available in English and there were no prima donnas or big stars. The musical could be produced around the world using different Actors.”

Despite this, it was not an easy investment decision:

“It was, after all, a new concept. The dividing line between success and failure is very fine in this business. This was particularly evident from the experience of the musical Chess which enjoyed great success in London but was a flop on Broadway. Björn and Benny learned a lot from this, which they took with them into the Mamma Mia! project.”

In the end the positive factors were enough for SEB to take the step. Judy Craymer’s excellent management with her extensive knowledge and years of experience was also a determining factor.

“We are in close contact and have great faith in each other. She has done a wonderful job with the musical.”

In hindsight, the musical has been a profitable investment for everyone involved. Under Judy Craymer’s management, with full support from Björn and Benny, the musical has been transformed into a world famous brand. It has been played in over 270 cities and been seen by over 45 million people worldwide.

The explanation for this success is simple, according to Hans Engblom:

“Mamma Mia! is a story that has everything: Love, tears, laughter. It goes straight to the heart.”