Quercus Corporate Finance is delighted to announce the sale of M&G Presents Limited (trading as Qwerkity), to The Book People.
The Quercus team advised the shareholders of M&G Presents Limited (trading as ‘Qwerkity’) on the sale of the company to The Book People. The Book People is backed by private equity and prior to this acquisition had already expanded its range beyond books alone to toys, gifts and stationery.
Financial details have not been disclosed.
Qwerkity started life in 1989 as Presents for Men when the founder, Jane Hudson, noticed that it was difficult to find unusual, good quality and inexpensive presents for the male members of her family. Over the years the business has grown considerably, becoming one of the foremost mail order gift companies in the UK selling gifts for men, women and children as well as practical products for the house, garden and travel. In 2014, Presents for Men was rebranded Qwerkity to reflect this broader offering.
The owners Jane and Norman Hudson said:
"Quercus got to know and understand the details of our business intimately and they guided us in how to present it to potential purchasers. They supported and steered us through the sale process, which was much more bumpy than we had imagined. Their hard work and determination has resulted in us being able to retire.”
Quercus Corporate Finance welcomes the arrival of Mark Whelan as a Partner.
This latest senior appointment underscores the firm’s ambition to be the financial advisor of choice for businesses across the South.
Mark, who is based in Kent, has completed over 60 transactions and joins from EY.
Mark is a well respected figure in the waste management, recycling and industrial services sectors and previously worked for KPMG and Cleanaway, now part of Veolia.
Mark, who brings over 28 years of M&A experience to his new role, says that it is an exciting time to be joining Quercus.
“The firm's progress over the past three years is highly impressive and the opportunity to work with such a talented and well respected team with a clear strategy for growth was too compelling to turn down."
Nick Standen, Quercus Chairman added:
"I have known Mark for over 17 years and he is a highly experienced operator with an exemplary track record of getting deals done. We are delighted that he has decided to join us and we now offer clients a unique proposition; a partner group with over 100 years combined advisory experience and a track record of over 350 successful deals."
Quercus Corporate Finance is delighted to announce that one of its partners, Andrew Clegg, has been crowned Corporate Finance Adviser of the Year at the 2017 Insider Dealmakers Awards.
This is the second consecutive year Andrew has won this prestigious award - his third in total - which is voted on by the Corporate Finance community across the South East of England.
Nick Standen, Chairman of Quercus, commented:
“I am delighted that Andrew's achievements have once again been recognised this year. He continues to play a key role in the south east M&A arena with a deserved reputation for providing high quality advice and getting deals done."
Andrew Clegg added:
"This award is a great honour. It reflects not only a very successful year but also an enormous amount of hard work put in by the whole of the Quercus team. In the post-Brexit environment we continue to see strong momentum in the mid-market and expect 2017 to be another strong year for deals."
Quercus Corporate Finance is delighted to announce the sale of Variohm Holdings Limited to London Stock Exchange listed Acal plc.
The Quercus team, led by Amanda Hall and Andrew Clegg, advised the shareholders of Variohm Holding Limited (“Variohm”) on the sale of the group to Acal plc, for £12m.
Variohm is an independent market leader in the design, manufacture and supply of motion, sensor and measurement solutions for businesses across Europe and the USA. Founded by Roy and Joan Moffat in 1974, the business offers a wide range of component parts and sub-assemblies to customers requiring control and sensing products supported by engineering expertise and manufacturing capabilities.
Headquartered in the UK and employing some 150 highly skilled staff, Variohm comprises four complementary divisions operating across three UK sites and one in Germany.
Amanda Hall, Founding Partner of Quercus said:
“From our very first meeting with Roy it was clear how important it was to him and Joan that we found the right home for the business they had nurtured and grown over some 42 years. In Acal I believe we have found that buyer. Andrew and I are delighted to have led the team advising the shareholders in realizing the considerable commitment and investment they have made in Variohm over the years.”
Roy Moffatt added:
"I believe this is an excellent deal for both the shareholders of Variohm and Acal and I look forward to watching the Group flourish under its new ownership. The advice provided by Amanda and Andrew was outstanding; their total commitment to achieving an excellent result for us together with their straightforward, objective advice and years of tradecraft was greatly appreciated."
Quercus Corporate Finance LLP is delighted to announce that it has been shortlisted three times in the 2017 Insider Dealmakers Awards.
For the third year in a row the team has been shortlisted as 'Corporate Finance Team of the Year' and founding partner Andrew Clegg received 'Corporate Finance Adviser of the Year' and 'Dealmaker of the Year' nominations.
Nick Standen, Chairman of Quercus, commented:
“I am delighted that the community continues to recognise our latest deal activity with these much valued nominations. Our strategy of providing partner-led insight and clear and objective advice to the mid-market continues to serve us well, and we enter the New Year busier than ever.”
Quercus Corporate Finance is delighted to announce the sale of AWC Industries Limited to Sertec Group Limited.
The Quercus team, led by Amanda Hall, advised the shareholders of AWC Industries Limited (“AWC”) on the sale of the group to Sertec Group Limited, for an undisclosed sum.
AWC is a market-leading precision engineering business which provides technically challenging flat and round metal components for the European automotive industry. The group, which can trace its history back to 1919, employs over 700 staff across its modern facilities in the UK, Germany and Hungary.
Amanda Hall, said:
“With over 70% of AWC’s products being sold into Europe the business is highly dependent on this market place. This deal shows UK businesses with a strong European presence continue to be highly attractive post Brexit. I am delighted to have led the team advising the shareholders in realizing the considerable commitment and investment they have made in AWC over the last 13 years.”
Allan Cook, founder and majority shareholder of AWC added:
"I believe this is an excellent deal for both the shareholders of AWC and Sertec. We know that we have found a buyer that shares the same family owned values we instilled in AWC. In turn AWC offers Sertec access to additional products, customers and international reach. The advice provided by Amanda and the team at Quercus Corporate Finance was first class; their commercially focused, hands on approach and tireless commitment to achieving an excellent result made all difference and we are delighted with the result."
Quercus Corporate Finance is delighted to announce the sale of the business and assets of Camp Hopson Funerals on behalf of Camp Hopson & Co Limited.
The Quercus team advised the Board of Camp Hopson & Co Limited (“Camp Hopson”) on the sale of the business and assets of Camp Hopson Funerals to Dignity plc for an undisclosed amount.
Camp Hopson is a 5th generation family business that has been in the heart of Newbury for over 100 years. The sale of the funerals business is the third M&A transaction that Quercus have advised on for Camp Hopson over the past 18 months and clearly demonstrates our focus on building longstanding trusted adviser relationships with our clients. Quercus previously advised on the successful sales of the group's retail operations in 2014 and their removals business earlier this year.
Neil Giles, Senior Director, said:
“We value our relationship with Camp Hopson very highly and these are excellent deals for both the group, and the management and staff of the various businesses involved. Across three complex transactions we have sourced partners in Morley Stores (retail), Dignity plc (Funerals) and Ward Thomas (Removals) who have excellent track records of acquiring independent businesses, maintaining brands and using their expertise to develop businesses and giving staff enhanced opportunities as part of a larger group.”
Jonathan Hopson, Director of Camp Hopson added:
“Over the past 18 months we have been delighted with the advice, quality of service and the seamless manner that Quercus integrated into our team. We are extremely grateful to them and in particular the skills they demonstrated in presenting the various businesses to prospective buyers with the focus very much on future potential rather than historical performance."
The Quercus team advised the Board of Camp Hopson & Co Limited (“Camp Hopson”) on the sale of Camp Hopson Removals Limited to London-based removals group, Ward Thomas, for an undisclosed sum.
Camp Hopson is a 5th generation family business that has been in the heart of Newbury for over 100 years. This is our second transaction for the Group in two years as we successfully sold their retail operations in November 2014.
Following this sale and a strategic review undertaken by the Board, the decision was taken that it was in the best interests of both the shareholders and employees to sell Camp Hopson Removals to an organisation that had the expertise, experience and track record to fully exploit the opportunities available to the business.
New Giles, Senior Director at Quercus said:
“This is an excellent deal not just for Camp Hopson, but also for the staff and management of Camp Hopson Removals. We have sourced a partner in Ward Thomas who understands the removals market and has a successful track record of acquiring family owned businesses, investing in them and leveraging their USPs. We are delighted to have been lead adviser on this transaction."
Jonathan Hopson, Director of Camp Hopson added:
“We are delighted that we appointed Quercus Corporate Finance as our adviser. Their understanding of how best to present our business secured us a first class price and also made sure there were no surprises for us or Ward Thomas. This made a significant difference to the outcome. As with all transactions there were some complexities, however Quercus’s ability to find solutions and to bring parties together in a non-adversarial way to find solutions is very impressive.”
Quercus Corporate Finance is delighted to announce it has successfully raised funds in the retail software sector as ImpulseLogic Limited ("ImpulseLogic") receives new growth capital.
The Quercus team introduced two new investors and advised the Board of ImpulseLogic Limited on its latest funding round. Financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed.
ImpulseLogic's pioneering solutions suite for the retail sector, Dynamic Store Merchandising ("DSM"), automaticaly applies advanced store inventory management to optimise gross margin return on inventory performance across all products within all stores, with particular emphasis on the recovery of losses in perishable products.
ImpulseLogic is headquartered in Reading with offices in San Ramon, California.
Andrew Clegg, Partner of Quercus said:
“We are delighted to have been able to work with the ImpulseLogic team and to introduce new investors to such an exciting business. ImpulseLogic has developed a highly differentiated proposition for the retail sector and we wish them well as they seek to accelerate their growth plans".
Les McNeill, ImpulseLogic's CEO and Chairman added:
“We are delighted to have worked with Quercus on this important transaction. Through their extensive contacts they were able to identify two new investors for the business with relevant skills and experience and the new capital will enable us to maximise the global opportunity. We look forward to working with Quercus again in the future".
Quercus Corporate Finance LLP is delighted to announce that one of its partners, Andrew Clegg, has been crowned Corporate Finance Adviser of the Year at the 2016 Insider Dealmakers Awards.
This is the second time Andrew has won this prestigious award which is voted on by the Corporate Finance community across the South East of England.
Nick Standen, Chairman of Quercus, commented:
“I am delighted that Andrew's achievements have once again been recognised this year. He remains a key figure in the south east M&A arena with a deserved reputation for providing high quality advice and getting deals done."
Andrew added:
"I am very grateful that my peers chose to honour me this year. It is always a special feeling to be recognised with an award of this kind, which reflects not only a very successful year but also an enormous amount of hard work put in by the whole of the Quercus team. The good news it that we continue to see strong momentum in the mid-market and expect 2016 to be another strong year for deals."
