Third-generation owners sell to private equity for £86m

The Challenge

The family behind Marrick Foods wanted to secure the future of a business their grandfather founded, without losing the brand or the jobs that had grown up around it. They had never been through a sale process and wanted advisers who would tell them plainly what to expect.

Our Approach

We started eighteen months before going to market, tidying the group structure, regularising long-standing supply arrangements and resolving a dormant property issue that would otherwise have surfaced in due diligence.

When bidders arrived, we ran a tight auction alongside the family's corporate finance advisers and negotiated protections for the brand, the site and the senior team into the final documents.

The Outcome

The business sold to a mid-market private equity investor at an enterprise value of £86m, completing fourteen weeks after exclusivity. The family retained a minority stake and the chair's seat.