Rudridge Limited / Travis Perkins plc

Cavendish is delighted to announce that it has advised on the sale of Rudridge Limited, a leading specialist independent merchant to the groundwork, drainage and civil engineering industries, to Travis Perkins, a leader in building supplies and materials. The sale price was not disclosed.

Founded in 2000 with one site in Farnham, Surrey, Rudridge Limited now operates from four branches in the South East England region providing services to a wide range of civil construction professionals, including housing groundworkers, housing developers, highway agencies, hard landscaping and paving contractors, rail construction workers, sports and recreational builders and ducting, cabling and communications workers.

Travis Perkins plc, the Northampton based FTSE 100 company, has been supplying the building and construction trades for more than 200 years and is one of the biggest suppliers, operating 1,900 outlets with more than 24,000 employees in the UK and Ireland.

Alan Betteridge Director and joint-founder of Rudridge said;

“… we would like to say a massive thank you to you all. When we set off on this process, we had no idea what to expect, and had to select the support team we felt we could best work with.

Without blowing our own trumpet, we couldn’t have done a better job in choosing you! A great mixture of characters that all complemented each other, and consummate professionals.
Thank you once again to each and every one of you.”

Peter Gray, partner at Cavendish added;

“This was a great result for the shareholders and management of Rudridge. We ran a very focused process with a number of interested parties. I am delighted that we achieved such an excellent result for our clients.”

He added;

“Strong economic growth and low interest rates coupled with an abundance of cash on companies’ balance sheets and favourable credit markets provided a supportive backdrop for M&A last year. Broadly we expect these conditions to persist in 2015.”

Cavendish has made an outstanding start to 2015, with the successful conclusion of 5 sales so far.

“Over the past 60 years we are proud to have built a market leading business. We are now delighted that in Safe Fleet we have found a great home for our business to continue to grow, innovate and support both our employees and customers.

Our advisor Joe Stelzer at finnCap Cavendish tirelessly assisted us through the process and was on hand at each and every step of the journey.”

Nick Luscombe, CEO, Labcraft

“This transaction is a hugely significant milestone in KMP’s development, strongly positioning the business for its next phase of growth, allowing us to extrapolate our already strong global reach with opportunities for economies of scale across complementary brands and products.

I am grateful for the invaluable advice, support and guidance provided by Joe Stelzer and his team throughout the process.”

Joe Eisenberg, Chairman & CEO, KMP Holdings Ltd

“The acquisition of FAI by Motus will bring us many synergies, with scope to expand our supply chains and product ranges, as well as the opportunities to enter new markets. Both existing and new customers will benefit from our core aims of best availability, best service, best quality and best price. Our business ethos is so closely aligned with Motus’s that the change of ownership will be seamless, but the benefits will be felt by all.”

Jonathan Alexander, CEO, FAI

“The Cavendish Team, led by Alistair and Mike, did a fantastic job managing the process, providing valuable advice and identifying Arbuthnot as the right partner for the business. It was a pleasure working together and we are pleased to have achieved a brilliant outcome for the company.”

Nick Offord, CEO, Red7Marine

“The Cavendish team were an integral part of this successful process. They were committed and professional throughout. Hydreco has an established market position, international footprint and complementary mobile hydraulic product line and this should be an exciting next phase of growth for the business under new ownership.”

Jim McColl, CEO and Chairman of Clyde Blowers Capital

“We are proud of the leading global business Xtrac is today; persistent innovation and exceptional customer service remain our highest priorities. Inflexion shares our values; its investment will accelerate our ambitious growth strategy, developing the next generation of high-end automotive transmission systems and expanding our coverage of the high performance hybrid and electric car transmission market. This partnership with Inflexion supports Xtrac’s ethos of employee ownership, and our team look forward to a new chapter in the continuing development and growth of our company.”

Adrian Moore, Managing Director, Xtrac Limited

Cavendish played an invaluable role throughout a complex transaction and in particular getting the transaction across the finishing line.

Lee MowleOwner and CEO of Stewarts

This deal provides an excellent platform for the Levolux business to continue its overseas expansion. As well as the compelling strategic fit, Alumasc provides an excellent home for the Levolux brand and team. We are delighted with the outcome and the support extended to us by Cavendish.

John SternChairman, Levolux

This has been a highly complex transaction involving 10 jurisdictions. Cavendish has held our hands throughout the process, providing a dedicated team who have done a superb job; this has greatly reduced interruptions to our businesses whilst adhering to the original timetable. Cavendish has achieved a very successful sale at a fair price to a buyer who will enjoy significant strategic value from the purchase.

Michael BostelmannGroup Managing Director of Fandstan Electric Group