£380m refinancing deal advised in Midlands

A £380m refinancing of the UK’s largest self-storage business, Safestore Holdings, has been completed with the finance team at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the Midlands acting as lead adviser.

HSBC Corporate Banking in the Midlands were integral to this process, acting alongside Royal Bank of Scotland plc as Coordinating Mandated Lead Arrangers and Bookrunners. Safestore is a long term customer of HSBC in the Midlands.

Matt Waddell, head of corporate finance at PwC in the Midlands and lead adviser to Safestore Holdings, said: “This significant refinancing deal confirms that there is genuine appetite for lenders to support quality businesses and back their growth plans.”

This is the third deal completed by the corporate finance team at PwC in the Midlands in the space of a fortnight.

“Confidence is gradually returning to the marketplace and this is evident in the volume of deals now in the pipeline and reaching completion. Private equity and trade interest in investment opportunities is increasing and this is shaping up to be a very positive start to the year,” added Mr Waddell.

Ian Sharp, HSBC Senior Global Relationship Manager, Midlands, said: “Our teams both in the Midlands and France are delighted to support our long term customer with a package which will provide a sound footing to support both domestic and international growth. We believe that the strength of the brand, along with the superior quality of its service and business model will help to ensure its continued success in the long term.”

The management team of Safestore Holdings has links with the Midlands dating back to its management buy-out (MBO) in 2003, which was backed by Bridgepoint Capital.

A year after the MBO, the company acquired Birmingham-based Mentmore for a consideration of £209m. After continuing to grow its business overseas and after listing on the main market in 2007, Safestore has now successfully refinanced its debt – providing a further £69m of facilities for expansion.

Richard Hodsden, chief financial officer of Safestore Holdings, said: “We are very pleased to have secured new banking facilities which clearly support the company’s plans for future growth. PwC’s knowledge and understanding of the debt markets was key to helping us secure the required facilities on the most competitive terms.”