Pictured above: Phil Burns, partner at Clearwater Corporate
Finance
Clearwater Corporate Finance has advised entrepreneur, Gary
Dutton MBE, on the acquisition of his business, Synseal Extrusions
Limited, the UK's leading supplier of PVC-U windows, doors and
conservatories, by private equity firm, H.I.G Europe ("H.I.G").
Synseal, founded in 1980, provides PVC-U extrusions to be made
into windows, doors and conservatory roofs, and supplies extruded
products to over 700 independent fabricators in the UK. The
business employs approximately 500 people at its headquarters in
Sutton in Ashfield, near Nottingham, and reported sales of
£76m in 2009.
Known for its efficient production methods and distribution,
Synseal began as a domestic installation company, diversifying to
become a fabricator and, later, a systems company. The business'
commitment to quality and customer service has seen it rise to
become the market leader in the supply of windows and
conservatories.
The transaction will see the management team of Synseal, led by
chief executive officer, David Leng, take a significant equity
stake in the business. A debt package from Yorkshire Bank was put
in place and contributed to by H.I.G in order to allow the
accelerated completion of the acquisition. H.I.G's total funding
into the deal totalled £30.5m.
Former owner of Synseal, Gary Dutton MBE, has retained an
interest in the home improvements industry via the launch of
Doorstop International Limited ("Doorstop"), a composite door
manufacturer.
The deal represents Clearwater's second industrial products
transaction of 2010 following the recent sale of specialist
builders' merchant UGS to BSS.
Phil Burns, partner at Clearwater, said: "The deal is huge for
the Midlands deals market, following a dearth of transactions in
2009, and is an excellent landmark on the region's road to
recovery. Gary Dutton MBE is a true entrepreneur and an inspiration
for others like him with the same passion for business. Alongside
his son Nick, I expect his next venture, Door-Stop International,
to be a comparable success story."