Freight forwarder switches to employee ownership model

European freight forwarding firm, Espace Europe, has moved to an employee ownership model in order to secure the long-term future of the business.

The Lichfield-based business handles international freight operations across a number of sectors, including automotive, aerospace, plastics and packaging.

The switch also rewards the loyalty of the 15 staff members, many of which have been with the firm since it started 17 years ago.

The transfer of shares into an Employee Ownership Trust allows the employees to have a greater influence over the immediate running of the business, whilst ensuring that provisions are in place to protect its long-term success.

Tony Shally, managing director at Espace Europe, said: “Choosing to adopt an Employee Ownership model is one stage of our exit strategy.
“Thinking about the future, we had no desire to sell or split up the business, and indirect ownership offered us an opportunity to secure the legacy of the business and reward our all of our staff members in the process.”

The process of switching to the employee ownership model was guided by Shakespeare Martineau, which provided legal support in all aspects of the transaction. Odyssey Corporate Finance acted as lead adviser.

Gary Davie, head of employee ownership at Shakespeare Martineau, said: “Choosing Employee Ownership is a powerful move. It has the ability to empower staff members to not only help carry a business going forward but also to take a more active and involved role in both its day-to-day and long-term success.

“Espace Europe has marked itself out as a business that really cares for its employees and I’m sure it will continue to be successful going forward. Above all, the decision to move to an employee-owned structure is one that will benefit customers and provide security for long-term commercial relationships.”

Mike Yiannis, director at Odyssey Corporate Finance, said: “Espace Europe had been considering Employee Ownership as an option for quite some time. We worked together to ensure that the deal was structured in such a way that was not only tax efficient, but also met the commercial objectives of the business.”