Jamieson is pleased to announce that it has advised the management team of Sykes Holiday Cottages on the acquisition of a majority stake in the business by Vitruvian Partners from Livingbridge. No financials have been disclosed.

Sykes, a UK-based vacation house rental company, manages over 17,500 properties across the UK, Ireland and New Zealand. The new partnership with Vitruvian will help to fund the firm’s plans for further UK and international expansion, as it targets serving more than 3.5 million holidaymakers annually by 2023 and growing its workforce to more than 1,000 people.

Stuart Coventry, Andrew Cox and Jack Yang advised Graham Donoghue, Michael Graham and the management team on their reinvestment in the new structure as well as the terms of the new management equity incentive.

Jamieson is pleased to announce that it has advised CEO Pedro Dominguez and the wider management team of Palacios on its acquisition by MCH Private Equity and Ardian from Carlyle.

Palacios is a significant company in Spain in the products of Spanish provenance and ready-meals sectors, including categories such as chorizo, Spanish omelettes, refrigerated pizzas and frozen desserts. In 2018 the company had a turnover of over 200 million euros and currently employs more than 800 people. The group operates four production plants located across Spain and one in the United States (Florida).

Jose Basabe, David Kirkpatrick and Daniel Meschaninov advised the management team on the terms of their reinvestment and new equity incentive.

Jamieson is pleased to announce that it has advised co-founder and CEO Oliver Dlouhý and the management team of Kiwi.com in relation to the strategic investment in the business by General Atlantic (a US headquartered global private equity firm).

Kiwi.com, a leading online travel booking platform powered by cutting-edge technology, was founded in 2012 and was recognized as the #1 fastest-growing Czech start-up by Forbes Magazine in 2017 and 2018.  Through its proprietary technology and algorithms, Kiwi.com has a unique ability to offer expansive flight options to value-conscious consumers.  The Company pioneered technology that matches passengers to multiple carriers and flights on single itineraries, and partners with airlines, online travel agencies, and metasearch engines to sell more than €1 billion in tickets across the globe.

“We are thrilled to partner with General Atlantic as we embark on our next phase of growth, seeking to bring optionality and value to our expanding customer base in an increasingly complex online travel market,” said co-founder and CEO Oliver Dlouhý.  “The firm’s deep expertise in the tech and travel sectors and track record of helping high-growth, category-disrupting companies achieve global scale will be hugely beneficial as we take Kiwi.com to the next level.”

Jamieson is pleased to announce that it has advised the management team of Away Resorts on its acquisition by Bregal Freshstream from LDC, the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group.  As part of the deal, LDC will retain a minority shareholding in the business.

Founded in 2008 with backing from CBPE, Away Resorts is a UK holiday park operator with six resorts across England and Wales.  The holiday parks combined host close to 200,000 holidaymakers each year and the business has experienced significant expansion in recent years, with employees totaling around 950. Following the transaction, with the backing of Bregal Freshstream and its other shareholders, Away Resorts is planning a further £25 million of investment across the portfolio in the coming years.

Carl Castledine, who founded the business in 2008, said of Jamieson’s involvement, “Thank you David and Stuart – you paid careful attention to what was important to us and, you’re expertise and hard work let us to focus on our jobs with confidence we were being well looked after. We’re delighted with the end result and look forward to working with you next time around”

Stuart Coventry and David Kirkpatrick of Jamieson advised the Away Resorts management team.

Jamieson is pleased to announce it has advised the Management team of Marlin Brands on their new incentive structure alongside Oaktree Capital Management.

Marlin Brands is Australia’s leading portfolio of consumer durable brands focused on the living, gifting and convenience sectors. Their products are found in over 18,500 retail stores across Australia and New Zealand as well as digital channels such as Amazon, and increasingly in international markets.

Greg Kerr, CEO of Marlin Brands said; “The Team from Jamieson played a key role in supporting management through this process, allowing management to focus on running the business, whilst knowing that we had independent market leading experts to support management through the transaction.”

The Jamieson team advising Management comprised Ian Jamieson, Stephen Maxwell and Laura Yell. 

Jamieson is pleased to announce that it has advised Charlie Bryant, Andy Botha and their management team as part of the transaction.

ZPG owns and operates some of the UK's most trusted digital brands that help empower smarter property and household decisions, including Zoopla, uSwitch, Money, PrimeLocation and SmartNewHomes.

It is also one of the leading residential property data and software providers with a range of products including Hometrack, Calcasa, TechnicWeb, Ravensworth, Alto, Jupix, ExpertAgent, PropertyFile and MoveIT. ZPG's websites and apps attract over 50 million visits per month and over 25,000 business partners use our services. 

John Greenland and Pippa Knowles from Jamieson advised the team on their reinvestment alongside Silver Lake Partners and the new incentive plan.

Jamieson is delighted to announce that it has advised the management team of NEC Group on its acquisition by Blackstone from the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group, LDC.

Birmingham-based NEC Group is formed of the NEC, Resorts World Arena, ICC Birmingham and Arena Birmingham.  In addition, it operates caterer Amadeus and national ticket agency The Ticket Factory. LDC originally backed an MBO from Birmingham City Council in 2015 and has supported a successful four-year transformation programme alongside significant capital investment. The deal follows Blackstone’s acquisition of Clarion Events (UK-based international events & exhibitions group) last year and is expected to play to their strengths in the real estate sector.

NEC Group CEO, Paul Thandi, commented: “In the blur that can be the last few weeks of a transaction these days, Jamieson were exemplary. Beside me every step whether I wanted a call or an email early or late and at weekends nothing was an issue for Tom and the team. Their work was accurate, helpful and supportive exactly what any CEO or management team want and need in any transaction.“

The Jamieson team of Tom Burton, Ross Wheeler and Pippa Knowles advised CEO Paul Thandi, COO John Hornby, and the rest of the team during a competitive process on the terms of the transaction and the management incentive arrangements proposed by their new owner.

Jamieson has advised CEO Søren Poulsgaard Jensen, CFO Per Madsen and the wider management team of European ferry operator Scandlines on the sale of a majority stake in the business from 3i Group to First State Investments and Hermes Investment Management. The infrastructure arms of First State Investments and Hermes Investment Management have acquired 65 percent of Scandlines from 3i. At the same time, 3i also made an immediate reinvestment into the business and bought back a reduced 35 percent stake in Scandlines. Headquartered in Copenhagen, Scandlines operates two ferry routes between Germany and Denmark. Its eight ferries serve the freight and private passenger markets, with more than 42,000 departures annually.

Søren Poulsgaard Jensen, CEO of Scandlines said, "I have been very pleased with the cooperation with 3i to transform the company and develop its growth potential. I am looking forward to working with the new owners. Scandlines is a great company with dedicated employees; we will all benefit from this long-term investment". The three shareholders want to support Scandlines' continued growth, including further investment in green technology, and will continue to support management in delivering good customer service, safe operation and further optimizing green initiatives.

The Scandlines management team were advised by Stuart Coventry, Ross Wheeler and Jack Yang on their investment and the new management incentive.

Jamieson is pleased to have been able to advise the management team of the global private schools group, Cognita, on its sale from Bregal & KKR to Jacob’s Holding (Zurich-based family office).

Cognita, headquartered in London, was formed in 2004 by Sir Chris Woodhead (former Chief Inspector of Schools England) alongside Bregal with the acquisition of a single school in the UK and has since successfully expanded into Europe, Asia and Latin America. The Group now operates 70 schools across 8 countries, employing over 7,000 teachers and educates 40,000 pupils.

Chris Jansen, CEO of Cognita said, “KKR and Bregal have been long-term, supportive and excellent owners of Cognita.  Equally, we are delighted to secure a new partnership with Jacob's Holding, who we are confident will be excellent owners.  Changing ownership can be a challenging process but we have been expertly advised by Jamieson.  As a result the entire management team are all personally invested and highly motivated for the future.”

The Cognita management team were advised by Ian Jamieson, John Greenland, Ross Wheeler and Pippa Knowles on their re-investment and the new management equity plan going forward.

Jamieson is pleased to announce that it has advised the management team of Tangerine Confectionery on the acquisition of the business by Valeo Foods Group. Valeo is partly owned by private equity firm Capvest.

The deal will result in the combination of Tangerine, which has been majority owned by Blackstone since 2011 and has an extensive range of iconic UK sweet brands such as Barrett’s, Taverners, Jameson’s and Princess, with Valeo’s confectionery division. Valeo acquired Big Bear confectionery in the UK and Candy Plus in the Czech Republic during 2017.

Tangerine CEO, Anthony Francheterre, commented: “Tangerine and Valeo share a strong entrepreneurial culture and a shared focus on adaptability, innovation and agility, and we look forward to being part of an ambitious and fast-growing international food business.

Jamieson through their experience as well as values have been a tremendous help to support the management team in a challenging process. I highly recommend them.”

The Jamieson team of Ian Jamieson, Stephen Maxwell and Pippa Knowles advised Anthony Francheterre and the team on the terms of the transaction and the management incentive arrangements.