Avicenna Holdings Limited / Juno Health Limited

Cavendish Corporate Finance is delighted to announce the successful completion of the acquisition of Avicenna Holdings Limited by Juno Health Limited. Avicenna comprises 21 pharmacies, as well as a buying group operation serving more than 1,000 independent pharmacies.

The transaction proceeded by way of a scheme of arrangement and achieved final completion on 19 September 2019.

Cavendish Corporate Finance advised the Board of Directors of Avicenna on the successful sale process, led by Michael Jewell, with Shakespeare Martineau acting as legal advisor to the Board led by Keith Spedding.

Ian Gray, Chairman of Avicenna said: “We are delighted that our shareholders have shown such strong support for this acquisition and voted overwhelmingly in favour at the general meeting. I would like to thank both Cavendish Corporate Finance and Shakespeare Martineau for their sound advice throughout this process. I’m confident that Avicenna will continue to thrive as part of Juno.”

Juno Health Chairman Richard Smith said: “Avicenna is a well-established business delivering clear benefits to its members. It is one of the most recognisable brands among independent pharmacists and extremely well respected.”

The community pharmacies will be integrated into Juno’s existing chain with the buying group continuing to be run by Salim Jetha, Avicenna CEO. Juno plan for this to become the industry-leading buying and support group for independent pharmacies across the UK. Juno have considerable experience in the sector and the combination of Avicenna resources and expertise will support the independent pharmacy sector and improve membership benefits.

Michael Jewell, Partner and Head of Healthcare at Cavendish said, “we are delighted to have assisted the Board of Directors of Avicenna in finding the right strategic buyer, recognising the value of both the retail pharmacies and the buying group / independent pharmacy support services operations of Avicenna.”

“The finnCap Cavendish team, led by Michael Jewell, did a fantastic job, running a truly competitive international process and managing the transaction through the diligence process with great skill. They were instrumental in delivering this deal and the strong outcome.”

James Wooster, Director, Owner Venture Managers

“We are absolutely delighted with the outcome of this deal and are excited to be joining DNV. This strategic decision will enable us to further accelerate our long-term growth objectives and showcase our unique LUNA technology. Karri and Harry have achieved an outstanding result for us through their wealth of sector expertise and highly commercial advice and it has been a joy working with them.”

Barry Mulholland, Founding Partner at MBI

“We’re excited to be joining the Calibre Scientific family, who will enable us to further accelerate our long-term strategic growth objectives. The finnCap Cavendish team has achieved a fantastic result for our Shareholders. Their wealth of sector expertise, professionalism and unwavering dedication throughout the process were instrumental in achieving a successful completion.”

Darren Likely, CEO, Agar

“We are delighted with the support received from the finnCap Cavendish team throughout this process. Mike and the team ensured that we prepared meticulously, identified the right pool of potential investors and worked closely with us, the management team and our legal advisers to deliver a great outcome for the Shareholders. We wish the Intelling team and RDCP all the best in their next phase of growth.”

Karl Cockwill, Portfolio Director, NVM

‘finnCapCavendish have great international connections and were able to bring an Australian buyer in the patient flow software sector to us. Their tenacity and understanding of the deal dynamics enabled us to run a smooth process and sell Extramed to a strategic buyer.’

James Steventon, CEO Hospedia Limited

“The team at Cavendish have done a fantastic job advising the Board of Zenith. They were confident that there would be strong overseas interest in the business and they managed that interest extremely professionally. We are delighted with the outcome and look forward to the next chapter for Zenith.”

Ringo Francis, CEO Zenith Hygiene

“The Cavendish Team, led by Michael Jewell, did an excellent job managing a well-orchestrated auction process and ensuring the smooth closing of the transaction in a timely manner. They were professional and easy to deal with throughout and committed to achieving a successful outcome for the shareholders.”

Rhian Griffith, representative of the Shareholders at SG Court

I am very pleased to have found such a complementary match in Venture Life, a highly successful consumer healthcare group with a reputation for accelerating the growth of the brands it acquires.
The resources and expertise of Venture Life will see Periproducts on a trajectory of rapid growth under the guidance of a proven management team, through enhanced marketing opportunities, new product development and, crucially, access to a substantial number of export markets.The Cavendish team were of great assistance throughout the sale process and in particular finding us the most fitting acquirer, helped by their strong networks in healthcare and their understanding of the oral care market.

Richard Bernholt, managing director of Periproducts

“We are delighted to partner with Bridgepoint who will help take MVF to the next level. Bridgepoint has proved to be the perfect match for MVF because they understand the company vision and culture and have the financial capability and international reach to support the continued growth of the business.

We made absolutely the right choice in appointing Cavendish. Michael Jewell and the team were instrumental in getting us the deal we wanted. I would have no hesitation in recommending them to anyone thinking about a sales process.”

Titus Sharpe, CEO of MVF

I wanted to express my personal thanks to you for all your efforts in achieving a successful sale of Yorktest. I never knew how stressful and complex the sale process could be. I really do appreciate your finding a good deal in quite difficult circumstances.

John GrahamFormer Chairman of Yorktest