< PreviousBray & Bray announcespromotionsBray & Bray Solicitors has announced six internal promotionsacross the firm’s East Midlands offices.Toby Preston (corporate and commercial) and Amanda Sutcliffe(residential property) will be appointed as partners.Robin Johnston (corporate and restructuring), Catherine North(commercial property), Linda Jerman (business defence) and AndyHitchon (wills, trusts and tax) will be appointed as associates.Tim Gladdle, senior partner, said: "I am delighted by thesepromotions. At Bray & Bray we have developed an outstandingteam made up of strong individuals who work hard to achieve thebest possible results for clients. Our lawyers have made a namefor themselves in the East Midlands region and beyond for beingclear thinking problem solvers with the drive to get the job done.”APPOINTMENT NEWSEast Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk10Bleakley landschair role atlocal IoDNottingham lawyerLynn Bleakley has beenappointed chair of theInstitute of Directors(IoD) Nottinghamshireand Derbyshire branch.Bleakley, who worksfor Cartwright King, willchair an active IoD branchwith 720 Members.Ron Lynch, IoD EastMidlands regional director,said: “I'm delighted that Lynn hasaccepted this important appointment.She has already made a significant contributionto the activities of the IoD locally and I'm sure she'll continue to worktirelessly to support our members and the wider business community inDerbyshire and Nottinghamshire.”Elliot steps up at NCBCNic Elliott, a director of Nottingham law firm, Actons, has been elected as thenew president of the Nottingham City Business Club (NCBC) at the Club's AGM.He takes over from Jonathan English, managing director of video productioncompany, Skeleton Productions, who has been the club’s president for the pastyear.Elliot is an employment lawyer and heads up Actons’ employee investigationsteam. Prior to joining the firm, he spent eight years at international law firm,Wragge & Co including time in the HR department of a global retail bank. Inaddition to his work commitments, Nic is a governor at a local primary school.He said: “I am really pleased to have been elected as president of NCBC. I’vebeen involved in the club for some time, most recently as vice president, and lookforward to leading it over the next twelve months. I want to build on the greatwork Jonathan has put into developing the club and grow the membership furtherto ensure it reflects the strength of business in the city.” The AGM also saw James Simmonds, partner at accountants UHY HackerYoung elected as vice-president. Alison Rayner of Initial Design was re-elected asclub secretary.Wing flies into UHY Hacker Young - adamwing picAccountancy firm UHY Hacker Young has hired a newfinancial planner to its team. Adam Wing brings more than 13years’ experience in the financial services sector.Wing will be joining the Nottingham-based firm, following acareer in the financial services sector. He has worked forBarclays Wealth, PKF Financial Planning, Kingswood Taxationand Wealth Management, Pannells Financial Planning andNatWest.Wing said: “I am pleased to be joining UHY’s growing teamin Nottingham, as I feel I will be able to bring experience to myrole and continue to grow professionally within the firm. I amlooking forward to my future at UHY, as I will be able tocontinue helping people to address the financial issues whichaffect them.“I enjoy working with my clients to achieve their goals,whether they are an individual or a business, finance is stillimportant. Due to UHY’s broad range of clients - I will be ableto continue delivering a diverse service in my new role.”Partner promotion at Sharp Young & PearceNottingham law firm Sharp Young & Pearce have promotedpersonal injury solicitor Rebecca Emeleus to partner.Emeleus's promotion brings the number of partners at the firm toten.Staff partner Joanne Millward said: “The partnership is delighted tobe in a position to promote Rebecca to partner. Rebecca has shownreal motivation and passion to strive hard for her clients since shejoined. In addition, Rebecca has undertaken a number of new initiativesfor the firm and has taken on an active role in networking and marketingboth the PI department and the firm as a whole.”Emeleus added: “I am delighted to have been promoted to partner andwelcome the opportunities this promotion will offer. Sharp Young & Pearceis dedicated to providing personal legal services and I appreciate the supportthe partners have given me so far to instigate new proposals for the firm. Inmy spare time I am passionate about aviation and light aircraft and the firm has encouraged me to launch legalservices to the aviation and light aircraft industry on the back of this – showing how committed they are to their staff.”New managing partner at Rothera DowsonNottingham law firm Rothera Dowson hasrevealed a new managing partner, following thenews that Charles George is to step down.Family and matrimonial law specialist Ann-Marie Bowman will take over, having been withthe firm since 2002.She said: “I aim to build on the solidfoundations we have for running the business. Iwill be casting fresh eyes over all aspects ofthe practice and recommending any changesthat may be needed.”“I have a particular interest in our staff,who are our greatest asset. I will be looking tointroduce a new appraisal system, to helpassess individual development, leading togreater job satisfaction and, ultimately,improving client service.“We have an excellent managementcommittee here at Rothera Dowson and Iam relishing working with my colleagues tocontinue building the business.”Pall-Ex adds newdirectorPall-Ex, the Leicestershire-basedpalletised freight network, has appointedChris Bowden as its new group sales andmarketing director.Bowden is a former board member atDX (Group). He said: "Joining a companylike Pall-Ex, which has an expectation ofexcellent customer service as standard,is exciting but also a real challenge.Maintaining consistently high levels ofcare and delivery will be demanding,but I share the Pall-Ex ethos thatcustomers and members should be atthe heart of everything we do.”Kevin Buchanan, group managingdirector at Pall-Ex, added: “Over thepast 12 months, Pall-Ex has made aconscious decision to raise the baracross the industry through serviceexcellence, and to demonstrate itscredibility as the leading palletisedfreight network in the UK andbeyond.“We have seen dozens ofhauliers approaching us as thenetwork of choice this year, sinceUK Pallets announced itsclosure. With Chris havingworked with the likes of HP,Rolls Royce, ASOS and JohnLewis, he’s an excellent fit todrive Pall-Ex’s highstandards of serviceforward while continuingto attract the best newmembers andcustomers to ourgrowing network.”www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 11APPOINTMENT NEWSDEALSEast Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk12Physio adds to portfolio with Lloyds cashA Nottingham-based physiotherapy practice has opened a new clinic with the support of a £80,000 funding packagefrom Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking.Response Physiotherapy, which already has five practices located across Nottingham and Leicester, wanted toexpand its portfolio and identified a 10,000 sq ft space to rent inside the newly opened Embankment Medical Centreon Wilford Lane, West Bridgford.The business approached Lloyds Bank for funding to enable it to refurbish the premises and install the necessaryequipment to form a functioning physiotherapy practice. The loan was granted using the Funding for Lending Scheme(FLS) through which businesses can receive competitively priced lending.Response Physiotherapy, which now employs six people in its Embankment practice, plans to continue itsexpansion and increase the number of clinics running under the Response brand over the next twelve months.Martin Grieve, Director at Response Physiotherapy Limited, said: “After we found a space in the EmbankmentMedical centre to rent, we needed some additional support to enable us to fit it out to our high standard, in order toallow us to provide our patients with a bespoke service and unrivalled levels of care.“The funding provided by Lloyds bank has been integral in allowing us to do this and we now look forward tocontinuing to grow the business and our brand, with plans to eventually operate on a national scale.”Loughborough golf centre set todrive growth with fundingA Loughborough based golf driving range has opened a nine-hole mini-courseaimed at children, together with two football pitches, after securing a £32,000investment from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking.The investment has helped Charnwood Range Limited complete a renovationplan introduced by its current management following their acquisition of the sitein 2011.The work has seen derelict land adjacent to the site transformed into a brandnew crazy golf course.A dilapidated seven-a-side football pitch on the site has been removed as partof the renovation project, and replaced by two third generation playing surfaceswith ‘rebound’ walls.Following the installation of the pitch, Charnwood Range is aiming to not onlyprovide a suitable facility to help local people get active, but is also planning torecruit its own qualified coach to provide coaching to children in the region.The project was helped by Lloyds Bank’s participation in the Governmentbacked Funding for Lending Scheme.Peter Spencer, director of Charnwood Range said: “Having initially planned tocomplete this work gradually, as and when cash flow allowed, with Lloyds BankCommercial Banking’s help, we’ve been able to complete the work all at once,and will be able to start reaping the benefits right away.“This gives us a springboard as we aim to underpin our status as a first classsport and leisure destination, and we look forward to our continued growth inthe months and years to come.”Will Simpson, relationship manager at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said:“As part of our ongoing commitment to providing access to funding forbusinesses who have the ambition to grow, we were impressed withCharnwood Range Limited’s growth plan, and were pleased to provide thisfinancial package to help them accelerate the necessary renovations."New funding sparksgrowth pipelineA supplier to the construction sector in Nottinghamshire saysit is looking forward to growth with the opening of a new sitesupported by Yorkshire Bank.Family-run Green Bros supplies electrical and plumbingmaterials to the construction industry. The company wasestablished ten years ago by brothers Paul, Lee and JamesGreen to serve the building sector across Yorkshire andNottinghamshire.The company is soon to open a new purpose-built 6,000 sq ftsales and warehousing facility in Retford, replacing its existingsite in the town and complementing sales sites in Barnsley andDoncaster. The new facility has been supported by a £300,000loan provided by Yorkshire Bank in a deal arranged by RichardCouldwell, relationship manager at the Bank’s business andprivate banking centre in Doncaster.Paul Green said: “We’ve grown our business on thefoundations of providing a hands-on service and beingcompetitive on price. Working with Yorkshire Bank gives us theflexibility to pursue growth opportunities such as expanding ourpremises and creating local employment.“We were also able to grow during the recession. Thedownturn gave us a real opportunity to go out to talk to existingand prospective customers to understand what they needed,and for us to deliver.”Richard Couldwell, relationship manager at Yorkshire Bank’sbusiness and private banking centre in Doncaster, said: “Paul,Lee and James have built up a strong family business with theprospect for future growth. By investing in their own modernpremises they are laying the foundations for a successful futureincluding the possibility of local job creation."MBO provides lift for NottinghammanufacturerA Nottingham manufacturer of liftsand lifting equipment has changedhands in a management buyout,supported by a host of localprofessional services firms.Morris Vermaport announced thecompletion of the MBO for anundisclosed amount, led by itsexisting management team of JasonSwingewood, Andrew Waddell andPhillip Marsden.Based in Chilwell, and withrevenues of around £7m, MorrisVermaport has been involved in thedesign, supply, installation,commissioning and testing of new liftequipment as well as service and maintenance of all types of lifts for the UK market since1979. The company makes the most ecologically-friendly motor room-less (MRL) tractionpassenger lift on the market, the Ecocell®.Its sister business, Vermaport , supplies a shopping cart conveyor which operates on thesame incline as a standard escalator. The ‘Vermaport®’ is typically used in a multi-floor retailenvironment where floor space is particularly limited.A team of East Midlands-based professionals has supported the deal including Paul Bevanfrom Mazars, Mark Rutherford from Gateley and James Cooksey at Santander, which fundedthe deal.Jason Swingewood, managing director of Morris Vermaport, said: “I have worked as MDsince 2010 and along with Andy and Phil we are committed to driving the business forwardand continuing the success we have enjoyed over the years”.“For our customers, suppliers and staff nothing changes and it is very much business asusual. We’ve enjoyed first class support from our local advisors and we’re very pleased withthe support Santander and Mazars have been able to deliver. We’re all very excited for thefuture of the business.”Bevan added: “This is an impressive business, with an enviable track record. Under theteam’s leadership I am convinced that it will continue to prosper. Santander has been verysupportive and pragmatic, and it has been a pleasure to lead the delivery of what has been avery satisfying deal. The breadth of experience amongst the advisors just shows how strongthe professional services sector is in the East Midlands.”Jon Bennett, relationship director, Santander Corporate & Commercial said: “We aredelighted to be supporting the business in its next phase of growth. It is a great to be able toprovide funding through our Breakthrough proposition to a thriving East Midlands basedbusiness.”Rutherford, partner at Gateley added: The completion of this deal is a very positive stepand it has been a real pleasure working with everyone involved. I’m sure that in thesecollective hands the Morris Vermaport business will thrive.”DEALS13www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link Elbar expands with£1m loanA South Derbyshire business specialising infood products and packaging has secured £1m infunding to restructure its business facilities andexpand the business.Foston-based Elbar Worldwide Group hasagreed the finance with Barclays to enable them todevelop and modernise its premises, includingnew flooring, new refrigeration and a new store onthe site.Barry Croft, managing director of the ElbarWorldwide Group said: “We are delighted to havesecured the funding, which will enable us tofurther develop our site and our overall businessand could potentially result in an extra ten jobsbeing created. We have altered the business modelof the whole group and are now reaping thebenefits. We are looking forward to working withJames Rutter and his team at Barclays andappreciate the help and advice given by ColinPeacock at HSKS Greenhalgh.”James Rutter, senior business manager atBarclays said: “The Elbar Worldwide Group, like anumber of businesses at the height of therecession, found trading conditions extremelytough going. Recognising something needed tochange, Elbar altered its business modeldramatically, which has since resulted in a far morerobust business that is looking forward to thefuture. The expansion and development of itspremises will present them with a number of newopportunities to grow the business, and we’relooking forward to working with them movingforward.”Aerospace firm touchesdown in ShepshedAerospace firm Winbro Group Technologies has moved into the 28,147 sq ft Unit One ofIlluma House, on Gelders Hall Road, Shepshed, in a deal completed by Mather Jamie.Alex Reid of Mather Jamie said: “We acquired the Illuma House buildings on behalf of adeveloper client who has pursued and undertaken a division of the building into fourdistinct quality warehouse premises, ranging between 10,000 sq ft and 28,000 sq ft, withsuperb access to junction 23 of the M1.“We also advised our client to undertake refurbishment work to provide new tenantswith premises of a high specification and enabling them to tailor the units to fit theindividual needs of their businesses."We are pleased to have secured a high quality tenant in Winbro on behalf of ourclient.”Phil Antill, IT and facilities manager at Winbro Group Technologies, added: “Oursearch for premises of a suitable size and location started in January 2014. This is anexpansion project to support long-term aerospace parts production within our business.“Winbro Group has five other units in the Coalville area; and while we would havepreferred to have taken another unit more local to our existing base, 20,000 sq ft unitsare scarce within the locality which fit our criteria.“The premises fit our need of a good sized warehouse to convert into a highprecision workshop, the offices are currently oversized for what we need but willallow for future expansion, and they offer good motorway links, which will supportthe delivery schedules we will be working to.“We are also planning to create new jobs over the next two to three years tosupport the company’s growth.”PROPERTY NEWSEast Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk14Moorfieldcompletesacquisition of DerbyRiverlightsMoorfield Group, the real estate private equityfund manager, has completed the acquisition ofthe mixed-use Riverlights scheme in Derby for£16.5m. The development has been bought outof administration.The 199,008 sq ft Riverlights scheme was builtin 2010 and includes a combination of retail andleisure units ranging from 3,600 to 8,000 sq ft,alongside two hotels occupied by Holiday Innand Hampton by Hilton, and a Genting Casino.Derby's main bus station is at the rear of thescheme.Robin Matthews, Moorfield Group, said: “Werecognised significant potential in DerbyRiverlights to deliver a first-class retail andleisure asset. Derby City Council has beenextremely supportive of the acquisition and weare working closely with them to provide acomplementary offering that enhances the city’soverall leisure and retail portfolio.“The proximity of the bus station, RiversideGardens and the Council House already providessignificant footfall and the programme ofredevelopment works due to be deliveredaround the site will further enhance the locationsappeal to top-tier leisure and retail operators.”John Forkin, managing director at MarketingDerby, said: “The retail and leisure sector is akey element in the ongoing regeneration ofDerby, with over 25 million visitors and £570m ofretail spend recorded every year. Assets such asRiverlights are fundamental in ensuring that weare able to provide the very best experiences tovisitors and its enhancement really could helpDerby rediscover the river.“Moorfield is exactly the type of investor weshould welcome into Derby, with an exceptionaltrack record in the delivery of mixed-use leisureand retail destinations and I am entirely confidentthat the future of the Riverlights development isin safe hands.”Nottingham firms combine to secureChesterfield saleTwo Nottingham businesses have combined to secure the seven-figure purchase of alandmark office development in Chesterfield. NG Chartered Surveyors brokered thepurchase of Edinburgh House on Millennium Business Park to its client Bassi Properties,whilst Rothera Dowson dealt with the legal side of the deal.Edinburgh House is a 10,170 sq ft office complex that is let to insurance giant AIGuntil July 2020.Richard Sutton, director at NG, said: "Millennium Park is an established office areawith other occupiers including Accenture, Avoca and Aveva in Venture House, KellerGeoTechnique and the Westwick Group at Dunston Court, Emeg at Dunston Place andProact in several buildings on Dunston Technology Park.Gateway site in Oakham for sale Derby-based property agents Rigby & Co has gone to the market with the finalphase of Tresham College’s site in Oakham.The 1.5 acre site fronts Barleythorpe Road, a key route into Oakham Town Centre,close to Oakham Station.Russell Rigby, managing director of Rigby & Co, said: “Development land in Oakhamis hard to get – this site sits next to a 4.5 acre site which we sold in 2012 to ArborfieldEstates who subsequently secured Planning Consent for a new Sainsbury’s foodstore.The site is already arousing a great deal of interest, both locally and regionally, not justfrom developers but also from occupiers.”Innes England completesflurry of deals at SinfinInnes England has completed a series of deals at an industrialestate in Derby in the first half of 2015.Three new tenants have secured space at the Sinfin Industrial Parkso far this year including University of Derby/Derby Theatre, EliteFleet Maintenance and Paragon X wholesalers.The commercial property consultancy has also negotiated along-term lease renewal at the same location with MorganTechnical Ceramics at its 13,429 sq ft industrial premises. Thecompany specialises in the manufacture of ceramic cores,predominantly for aerospace and industrial turbines.Stuart Waite, associate director at Innes England, completedthe transactions. He said: “We are delighted to have concludedthese deals on behalf of our client and welcome these newarrivals to the estate. Sinfin is a popular and well-establishedindustrial and logistics location; home to a number of stronglocal, national and international businesses.“The site benefits from a manned gatehouse providing24/7 security, which has proved popular with interestedparties. There is only one void under 10,000 sq ft, whichis currently under offer, and there is strong interest inthe larger facilities, which we should be in a positionto announce shortly.”PROPERTY NEWSwww.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 15Harworth Estatescompletes twoLeicestershire dealsHarworth Estates, the property regeneration company,has signed two leases at its business park inLeicestershire.At Asfordby Business Park near Melton Mowbray,Leicestershire, Harworth has leased Unit C3e – a 602 sq ftoffice, to eSynergy Developments, which follows theexpansion of its existing waste treatment facility at Unit Eat the park in December 2014, and also Unit C3b – a 210sq ft office, to JT Fabrications (Leics) , a company thatprovides a range of mild steel, stainless steel andaluminium products - an expansion of its existing 3,429 sqft office/workshop.Liz Askam, property manager at Harworth Estates, said:“Our vacant stock continues to attract high levels of interest from both existing and new tenants, which istestament to our asset management initiatives which have helped enhance the quality of our business parksportfolio, such as superfast broadband, new estate landscaping and re-roofing works”.Letting agents were Lambert Smith Hampton and Colliers International.DEALSEast Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk16The longgoodbyeGo west, young man: that's the message from the EastMidlands' dealmakers after a resurgence in the US dealsmarket is making itself felt a little closer to home.And there's no doubt that the mergers and acquisitionscene is thriving in the US. As we went to pressm, M&Avolume this YTD is the second highest on record with$640.5bn (3,790 deals) behind 2007 ($705.3bn via 4,056deals).When the US sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold,as the old saying goes, and two of the East Midlands' mostprominent dealmakers are seeing the aftershocks rippledacross the Pond.David Browne, corporate finance partner at PKF CooperParry, says: "Things have changed, and there is a definitepick-up in the market. People are actually talking up themarket again, and companies are investing."Sellers have done all their naval gazing, and have got backaround to thinking: 'What do I want for my company?'.They're still very realistic about pricing, but there has been ahuge increase in the number of people coming to me andasking me what's involved in selling their business, andwhether we can work up a plan for sale - and they'remeaningful meetings."Paul Bevan, partner at Mazars, is also seeing a rise inactivity - says the finance is there to push through a deal."Banks are lending again for the right proposition," he says. "Ifthere's a sensible transaction on the table and the vendor isasking for a sensible price, then there are banks out therewho will back the deal."For companies that have a good quality middlemanagement ready to take over the company, then this isStill clinging on to a business that you wanted toexit years ago? Don't worry, say the region'sdealmakers - the Americans are coming...18 ÁDEALSwww.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 17SHUTTERSTOCK.COM / XTOCKDEALSEast Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk18fine, but the recession put a halt on hiring and so thereis a definite gap at this level in companies which isleading to owners staying on longer than they would'vehoped."However, Bevan is keeping his eye on the US market.He adds: "What's happening in the US will make itseffects felt in the UK. The lack of middle tiermanagement means that the international acquirer isoften the acquirer of necessity."Browne agrees, saying: "Whilst the pendulum isnever going to swing back to where it was in 2008, theamount of cash US funders are willing to leverage ismuch higher than in the UK. Some specialist US fundsare already established in the UK and they'll be active inthe market over the coming months.Elsewhere, and the deals market has proved "verypositive" for Spearing Waite in the last three months.Oliver Brookshaw, Oliver Brookshaw, partner incorporate, says: "We are seeing an increase across theboard with trade, management and venturecapital/private equity buyers all active. Not many of theacquisitions being undertaken by corporate clients arebank financed and companies are usually relying ontheir own cash flow or on existing bank facilities. "That is in contrast to buyouts in the £2-10m market,many of which are now being funded, at least partly, bybank debt. Having said that, virtually all of deals that weare seeing require sellers, who are selling out tomanagement, having to leave behind not only somedebt to be used by the management team to fund theacquisition but also occasionally having to leave insome equity as well, to be bought out at a later date.The result is that quite often sellers are not achieving afull exit but the deals are completing because they arewilling to accept this and the banks are themselveswilling to put debt into such a structure, although thecredit process continues to be long and occasionallytortuous." Finally, over at Fraser Brown, Tom Gray, partner inthe firm's corporate team, has been busy. He says: "Thefirst half of 2015 has been healthy so far in terms ofcorporate transactions and deal activity at FraserBrown. As ever, much of this seemed to be driven bythe close of the financial and tax year end and we havenoticed a slight softening as the election approached,with the accompanying uncertainties for business."On the trade side, highlights so far have included thetrade sale of Wilfred Whittington, a supplier of floristryproduct, equipment and accessories, in a substantialtransaction where the acquirer was a leading importerand distributor in the sector. In addition, we haveadvised during the first six months of the year on alarge acquisition in the automotive sector and anumber of deals in healthcare including pharmacy anddental. Current mandates include further disposals inmanufacturing and transport and acquisitions in theconstruction and pharmaceutical sectors. I think thisreflects the range of activity across markets." Next >