Canburg Limited / Business Growth Fund

Cavendish Corporate Finance is delighted to have advised Canburg, owner of two of the world’s most renowned luxury fitted furniture businesses – Smallbone of Devizes and Mark Wilkinson Furniture – on the capital investment of £8 million from Business Growth Fund (BGF), which will take a minority stake in the business.

The transaction builds on Cavendish’s in-depth expertise in the luxury sector, with previous transactions including Smythson, Princess Yachts, Theo Fennell, Liberty, David Morris, Watches of Switzerland and Mappin & Webb.

BGF’s investment will enable Canburg to accelerate its UK and international growth strategy. This will build on the success and vision that has seen its products take centre stage in the world’s most exclusive developments, becoming the choice of A-List celebrities such as Dustin Hoffman, Sir Elton John and Oprah Winfrey.

CEO Leo Caplan established Canburg in 2009 to purchase Smallbone and Mark Wilkinson Furniture. The British entrepreneur committed more than £10 million to the long-established businesses, enabling them to return to profitability. Following a successful restructuring programme, the group made EBITDA £2.1 million from sales of almost £30 million in the 12 months to 30 June, 2013. Profits are expected to have increased to over £3 million EBITDA in the year to June 2014.

Smallbone is the ultimate in bespoke cabinetry, founded on a time-honoured British craft tradition, with a passion for quality and design. Internationally recognised as the leading global luxury kitchen company Mark Wilkinson Furniture has set the style icons for classic and contemporary furniture for over three decades and has brought fitted furniture for the kitchen and rooms throughout the home into the highest echelons of fine luxury living.

The group has multiple routes to market, selling directly to high net worth customers through showrooms, in partnership with in-market dealerships, as well as selling to developers of luxury properties in leading locations such as New York City.

Howard Leigh, Senior Partner at Cavendish Corporate Finance, commented:

“Canburg has great heritage and is an outstanding example of British craftsmanship and expertise. It is a great brand ambassador for UK overseas, with around a third of its sales coming from internationally. We were very happy to play our part in helping the firm secure investment from the British Growth Fund and the specialist expertise of our corporate finance team in the capital raising arena is one of its core strengths.

Leo Caplan, CEO of the Canburg Group, commented:

“This is a really exciting time for Canburg. I first invested in these businesses because of my passion for the luxury furniture they both make. I started considering the strategic options for the group almost a year ago after being approached by prospective buyers, and instructed Cavendish to assess these. I wasn’t looking to sell but started exploring how best to take the business to the next level. The process reminded me why I fell in love with these companies in the first place and the fantastic opportunities that are available. I am confident that, over the next five years, we can grow the business from its current valuation of over £50 million (post investment) to a global luxury group worth in excess of £500 million.”

Paul OIdham, Regional Director at BGF, commented:

“Leo and his management team have successfully capitalised on Smallbone’s and Mark Wilkinsons’ high standards of design and manufacture building an impressive international reputation and broad customer base. They have looked to BGF to put investment behind their ambition to create a truly global business; we share this vision and over the next few years fully expect to see Canburg take a dominant role on the international stage.

“Thank you very much to the Cavendish team for all of your help and advice on this transaction. We are not sure how would have got to the end without you and you had an ability to find a mid-ground where both sides were happy – this certainly takes some skill.

Thank you for all of your hard work and we would not hesitate in recommending you and your services to anyone else.”

Martin Brown, Founder and majority shareholder of Wine-Searcher

“The Cavendish team, led by Lord Leigh of Hurley and Rebecca McCredie has done a fantastic job in managing the transaction with great skill. They were crucial in delivering this deal and its successful outcome – many thanks to the whole team.”

Johnny Goedhuis, Chairman of Goedhuis Waddesdon Limited

“In completing this transaction, we wanted to ensure that the growth and success of the business that we have built to date is the foundation for further expansion in the years to come. We are delighted with the outcome and we would like to thank the team at finnCap Cavendish for all of their help throughout this process. They are experts at advising founders and entrepreneurs and they provided us with invaluable advice and guidance throughout.”

Hugo Douglas-Pennant and Martyn Bell, co-founders of Bramblecrest

“We are delighted to be partnering with Rockpool. This transaction will enable us to accelerate our long-term growth objectives and help expand our international presence, especially in the US. Karri and Amy achieved a fantastic result for us and their ecommerce sector expertise, professionalism and unwavering dedication throughout the process were instrumental in achieving a successful completion.”

Nick Comer, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder at Rosetta Brands

“We are immensely grateful for the hard work and expertise we received from finnCap in securing this fundraise. Zuleika’s knowledge and communication skills were outstanding. It is the first time we have raised external funds so we were heavily reliant on their introductions, all of which were a good fit for Ro&Zo. Zuleika’s guidance through the process was exemplary. We are delighted to have chosen Pembroke as our new shareholders and look forward to a long relationship with them as we continue our growth strategy.”

Rachel Heather, CEO and Co-Founder, Ro&Zo

“On behalf of all of the shareholders at Peach, a huge thank you to the team at finnCap Cavendish – they have done a great job. With the unprecedented macro back-drop that we have all been experiencing, we needed an adviser who was thoughtful, tenacious and prepared to go the extra mile. We got of all this in spades from the finnCap Cavendish team and it has been a pleasure to work with them. We would not hesitate to recommend them to other business founders and entrepreneurs who are in need of experience-led judgement and advice.”

Hamish Stoddart, co-founder & CEO, Peach Pubs

“I would also like to thank the team at finnCap Cavendish. They have done a great job in finding us the right buyer and running a smart and efficient process. Their support throughout has been excellent and combined with their commercial approach and sector knowledge, they have made great advisers for us.”

Morgan Davies, Founder of Barburrito

“Joe Stelzer and his team at finnCap Cavendish were the perfect partners as we navigated this exciting next step for the group. The firm’s wealth of expertise in advising entrepreneurial growth businesses, partnered with their quality of service and professionalism was invaluable and helped make this deal function as smoothly as possible.”

Charles Barnett, Managing Director & Founder, Lyco Group

“This transaction is huge for our business as we look to continue our growth journey. We’re very excited to have raised enough capital from a leading impact investor to expand our market-leading position and maintain standards of excellence across all our products. We’re hugely grateful to the team at finnCap, who played a fundamental role, in what we hope, will be a very exciting growth story.”

Ben Wigley, CEO, Big Green Smile

“I would like to thank all of those involved in the process that has concluded with us ultimately choosing Neighborly as our partner going forward, those at finnCap Cavendish and our CFO Mike Bergin, without whom this would have not happened.”

Scott Mullins, President and CEO of Pimlico Plumbers