Towerbrook, a British-American investment fund, has paid about €300m for Van Dijk Educatie of Kampen, the largest supplier of school textbooks in the Netherlands, the Financieele Dagblad reported on Tuesday.

Van Dijk, which has a payroll of 400, claims to have a two-thirds of the market for reading material in secondary education and 74% for vocational training schools as well as most of the university market.

Van Dijk CEO Hans van der Wind sees great opportunities for the company in the digitalisation of education.  He expects the company to be transformed from a supplier of textbooks into a specialised schools services  provider and consultant.

Digitalisation can make learning more personal and attractive but it is complex in schools.  Students must be coached into how to use the digital platforms and teachers will have to take a fresher approach, Van der Wind said.