Crawford hungry for more after Ark swoop

CHESHIRE pharmaceutical company Crawford Healthcare is buying the woundcare assets from listed company Ark Therapeutics in a deal worth up to £2.7m.

The acquisition will take the Knutsford company’s turnover to around £8m, chief executive Richard Anderson told TheBusinessDesk.com.

Crawford, which is owned by Mr Anderson and North West financier Richard Hughes, specialises in the skincare sector, and is profitable and has funds to acquire more businesses.

Mr Anderson said the aim was to combine his knowledge of the pharmaceutical sector with Mr Hughes’ in corporate finance to create a “very significant international skincare company.”

He added: “The acquisition of  the wound care business is an exciting step in the development of Crawford in terms of delivering its stated aim.”

Crawford was acquired initially in April 2005, and raised additional equity from Richard Hughes the founder of Manchester-based Zeus Group in 2009. Since then it has completed eight  acquisition or in-licensing deals and now has sales in more than  25 markets.

Mr Anderson added: “We like the skincare market – it’s a niche area where we can make a difference.

“We are profitable and well funded and adept at acquiring under-valued assets and driving value from them using our sales and marketing functions.”

He said a number of jobs would be relocating to the North West as a result of the Ark deal. “The North West is an excellent location in terms of talent pool and there being a large chemicals and pharmaceuticals sector here.”