International deal secures future of historic Yorkshire manufacturer
ONE of Huddersfield’s oldest businesses, which exports across the world, has been acquired in a deal saving 62 jobs.
A group of local entrepreneurs has teamed up with an Australian inward investor to buy Sellers Engineers, which has been designing and manufacturing machinery for the carpet industry since 1912, and is based on Trident Business Park.
The deal sees Mike Shotton, former chairman of textile company Quantum Clothing, lead a group of Yorkshire-based investors to acquire the business alongside CTS Group, an Australian company which operates in the same sector, in a pre-pack administration deal that will safeguard the future of the business.
The company, which will now trade as Sellers Global Engineers Limited (SGEL) and has customers in more than 60 countries including the USA, Brazil, China, Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, had been hit by the loss of major contracts in Libya because of the civil unrest in the region.
Chris Wood and Andrew Waudby of Clough Corporate Solutions, which is part of Yorkshire-based chartered accountancy firm Clough & Company, acted as joint administrators.
Wood said: “Sellers is a well-known local business with a loyal workforce and an unrivalled reputation for producing high quality machinery that is used by carpet manufacturers throughout the world.
“We are delighted to have concluded this sale which preserves the future of this long-standing Huddersfield business and secures the jobs of all 62 employees.”
Mike Shotton, who is chairman of Sellers Global Engineers and whose family are from Huddersfield, said: “This deal is great news for both Sellers’ employees and the company’s loyal client base.
“Sellers has been at the forefront of the carpet manufacturing industry for more than a century and this deal means the company can look forward to an exciting future.
“As a UK exporting manufacturer, this business, like its peers, is vital to the future of the British economy which is why we are investing in it and in Huddersfield.”
Advisers on the deal included Howard Smith (restructuring) and Jon Sharp (pensions) of KPMG and Duncan Lole of Walker Morris while the administrators were advised by Alice Pratt of Clarion Solicitors.
