Pictured above: (l-r) Dan Knowles, David Ellis and Peter
Knowles
A leading manufacturer of buckets, bins and wheelbarrows has
acquired its local rival in a deal that is expected to safeguard
dozens of jobs in the Black Country.
H&E Knowles (Lye) Limited has acquired local rival Brettell
& Shaw. H&E Knowles was advised by leading Black Country
law firm Higgs & Sons.
Higgs & Sons' David Ellis led the legal team representing
the buyer. He said: "We had some tight deadlines to meet in order
to complete the transaction whilst addressing employment, property
and environmental issues in time. Luckily it was possible to
galvanise the teams on both sides in order to meet the deadlines
set."
Peter Knowles, Managing Director of H & E Knowles, said the
firm now aimed to take advantage of economies of scale: "The
acquisition will allow us to offer a larger range of products to
our existing customer base which includes a number of major
hardware and garden suppliers including B&Q, Homebase and
Focus. We also hope to benefit from the considerable goodwill and
customer base built up by Brettell & Shaw over many years."
Brettell & Shaw is a family business established in 1902.
The company supplies buckets, bins and other related hardware and
garden products to customers across Europe. Both businesses are
long established family firms. Peter Knowles' son Dan is a director
of H&E Knowles and John Cartwright, one of Brettell's directors
and the grandson of the founder of Brettell & Shaw will be
joining H & E Knowles to promote the larger business.
Higgs & Sons operates from offices in Brierley Hill,
Stourbridge and Kingswinford and is one of the largest commercial
law firms in the Black Country .