Letting and estate agents in £100m merger to form national group
Lomond Capital, the owner of Manchester lettings & estate agent Thornley Groves, is to merge with Yorkshire firm Linley & Simpson to create a new national lettings and estate agency group as part of a £100m deal backed by private equity group LDC.
The new group unites two of the UK’s leading regional lettings and estate agencies.
It has a combined portfolio of more than 22,000 properties under management and major hubs in private rental hotspots including Brighton, Edinburgh, Leeds, Manchester, Aberdeen and Birmingham.
The new group brings together some of the UK’s strongest high street letting and estate agency brands including Thornley Groves in Manchester, John Shepherd in Birmingham, Linley & Simpson across Yorkshire and Braemore in Edinburgh. All local brands will continue to operate in their respective regions.
It will now look to strengthen its nationwide network through complementary acquisitions and organic growth.
Lomond Capital was established in 2010 by Stuart Pender and Roger Lane-Smith. It now manages residential properties worth in excess of £2.75nn, sells more than £750m worth of property per annum and employs more than 325 members of staff. It currently has businesses in Aberdeen, Birmingham, Edinburgh, St Andrews, Manchester and Brighton.
Linley & Simpson was established in 1997 by Will Linley and Nick Simpson. The business manages more than 10,000 properties across a network of 22 branches, including Leeds, York, Hull and Sheffield. Together with a thriving sales and new homes offering, the business now employs in excess of 260 members of staff.
Stuart Pender, group CEO of Lomond Capital, said: “Lettings and estate agents are facing an increasingly complex regulatory environment and challenging trading conditions.
“We have had significant success in bringing together and supporting good quality regional agents under one operating model whilst maintaining a local, on the ground approach which together has delivered significant benefits to landlords and tenants.
“Market conditions in the private rental sector are well suited to continued growth through consolidation. We are looking to continue to consolidate regional markets, whilst at the same time enhancing the proposition the sector offers to clients, through our network of market leading regional agents.”
Linley & Simpson and Lomond Capital have driven success through different growth strategies. Linley & Simpson is already backed by LDC and has grown significantly by adopting an ambitious acquisition strategy across the Yorkshire region.
Since LDC’s investment in June 2018, the business has made 18 acquisitions and doubled its portfolio from 5,000 to 10,000 properties. Lomond has invested in developing a regional platform by building a presence in some of the most attractive UK cities for private renters.
Co-founder and CEO of Linley & Simpson, Will Linley, will join the board as group managing director with a focus on delivering the group’s ambitious acquisitive growth strategy. Nick Simpson will become CEO of Yorkshire and Martin Elliott CFO.
Will Linley said: “This transaction is a continuation of our approach to building our business while retaining our successful local approach. We are actively seeking fresh opportunities to grow within Manchester.
“We’re excited about the opportunities in each of the Lomond regions and I’m looking forward to working closely with Stuart, the Lomond team and LDC to help grow the new group.”
LDC was advised by Clearwater International.
