A MERGER of three educational furniture manufacturers has created a brand with annual revenues of £26m.
Keighley-based British Thornton ESF and its Scottish sister company EME Furniture have merged with Claughton Office Equipment in Hull to create British Thornton. The new company is targetting sales of £30m in its first year and currently has the manufacturing capacity to reach £50m.
The sector is worth about £200m a year giving the new company a market share approaching 15%, which it plans to increase through acquisition as well as organic growth.
Gerard Toplass, Claughtons’ managing director who will become chief executive of British Thornton, said: “The customer experience in the education sector in the UK has been lacking for some time due to the seasonality of the ordering cycle, a lack of product innovation and an inability for the market to properly meet customer demand. With our new business we are going to address this and we will change the sector for the better by bringing a more retail-focussed approach, enhancing the customer journey and ultimately improving value for money.”
Jeff Barber and Martin Kennedy of BTG Corporate Finance advised Claughtons, while corporate finance advisors Begbies Traynor Group, Gosschalks Solicitors and Blacks Solicitors also worked on the deal.
Mr Barber said: “This is the first of an anticipated series of strategic acquisitions that we are working on with the Claughtons management team. The merger with British Thornton now provides the platform for a period of significant growth, both organic and through acquisition.”
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