The Business:
Established in 1969, Amberol is a family business based in Derbyshire that specialises in the manufacture of self-watering planters and litter bins. Using efficient rotational moulding plastic manufacturing processes, the company has consistently delivered high-quality, reliable and sustainable products that are sold into councils, supermarkets and horticultural suppliers.
The Transaction:
The sale of 100% of the shareholdings of Amberol Limited to privately backed Leafield Environmental Limited. The management of Leafield, a complementary rotational moulding manufacturer, identified significant synergies across the product portfolios and ethos of the two businesses.. With over 30 years of experience in premium plastic products, using similar innovative design and manufacturing expertise, Leafield is considered to be a good home for Amberol.
Legal advice was provided to the sellers by Nelsons. The buyer was advised by Freeths (legals) and FRP Advisory (financial due diligence).
Philip Maddox, Managing Director at Leafield Environmental said: “Leafield were actively looking at complimentary acquisitions and Amberol’s product range was a perfect fit for Leafield’s growth plans. We have been working closely with Patience to ensure that we maintain the Amberol ethos to ensure continuity of experience for their customers. We are excited to welcome Amberol’s employees to our business and are looking forward to working in collaboration with them. The business will continue to operate as Amberol and will serve their loyal customers as normal.”
As a shareholder of a family business choosing the right time to exit was a challenge. Months before the project started, we discussed how the process would work and Azets gave us support in making our decision to enter a sales process. The team at Azets discussed our desired outcome for the business so they could seek a suitable buyer.
Azets then negotiated on our behalf, which allowed us to keep running the business with minimal disruption. The Azets team, who were with us every step of the way, share a wide skill set and remained a constant throughout. They were available out of hours, kept us well informed, while protecting us from unnecessary stress. We simply could not have done this without the Azets team, who delivered a positive outcome within the planned timescale and worked seamlessly with our legal team from Nelsons.
Being involved in a sales process once was plenty for me, I could not imagine doing it over and over again!
How we have helped:
Azets provided valued advice to the shareholders from very early stages through to completion. The corporate finance team, comprising Mark Selby, Tom Eastwood and Doug Allan, delivered full lead advisory service to the vendors. This included the preparation of sales documentation, identification of potential purchasers, management of the marketing process, negotiation of buyers’ meetings and offers, and handling the transaction from inception through to agreement of heads of terms and subsequently to completion.
Mark Selby (Partner) commented,
“Working with the shareholders and management of Amberol has been a highly enjoyable journey from start to finish. In partnership with our Azets colleagues and Nelsons Solicitors, we delivered a fantastic deal for our client.
Amberol’s products and brand are well-recognised within the street planter and street furniture market. New owners Leafield were identified as an ideal buyer for the business due to the overlap in offering and outlook.”
