Legal team behind £3.7bn Dr Martens float revealed

The legal team behind the £3.7bn flotation of iconic Northampton boot brand Dr Martens is also from the Midlands.

Advising the family founders of the company was the corporate team at Shakespeare Martineau who also advised the Griggs family on the company’s original sale in 2014 to private equity giant Permira for £300m – at the time of sale the family retained a 10% stake in the business.

Richard Wrigley – partner at Shakespeare Martineau and specialist in corporate transactions advised the Griggs family on their participation in the IPO, including pre-IPO reorganisation, underwriting arrangements and sale of shares.

He said: “This has been an incredibly successful float and indicates the interest and value in such as well-established and popular brand, as shown by the IPO offer being eight times oversubscribed and within the first hours of the trading the share price jumping in value. The successful float is a culmination of the success and hard work of the Griggs family and later the management backed by Permira.

“We have a long-standing relationship with the Griggs family and are pleased to have supported them in this incredible brand’s journey.”

Stephen Griggs said: “We’re very proud of our family’s brand and how, by working with the right people it has transformed into a global icon.

“We’ve got a long-standing relationship with Richard and the Shakespeare Martineau team – they have always been as invested in our success as we are.”