Gresham House Ventures has exited its stake in logistics, warehousing and removals business Master Removers Group (MRG), via the sale of Bishopsgate, its B2B logistics division, to listed Swedish group Elanders AB (Elanders) and alongside this the sale of its shares in MRG’s domestic removals business to management.

Gresham House Ventures initially invested £7.2mn into MRG via the Mobeus VCTs in 2014. MRG has delivered consistent growth since then, despite various macroeconomic headwinds. The VCTs’ investment has driven both an increase in penetration among Bishopsgate’s existing customers and an expansion of its customer base. The removals business has also grown consistently over this period, expanding geographically through the completion of several astute acquisitions.

The sale of Bishopsgate to Elanders, based on an enterprise value of £47.5mn, has been approved by both the business’s management team and Gresham House Ventures, and will enable Elanders to develop its presence in the UK market while providing long-term continuity for Bishopsgate’s 276 staff. 47 members of staff across both Bishopsgate and MRG’s domestic removals business will also directly benefit from the deal via a generous share ownership scheme that has long rewarded key staff for the continued effective running of the business with regular dividends.

For Gresham House Ventures, the exit delivers a strong return, with an IRR of 26.6% over the nine-year holding period and a money multiple of 3.4x.

The exit continues a busy period of dealmaking for Gresham House Ventures, which recently made a £1.75mn follow-on investment in e-commerce software business Patchworks. This followed a £1.1mn investment into biotech research business Metrion Biosciences, a £1.4mn investment into tailor-made holiday company TravelLocal and a £3mn investment into leading travel technology business Branchspace.

Bob Henry, portfolio director at Gresham House Ventures, said:

“This investment has been a major success story for the Mobeus VCTs and has delivered an outstanding return over a long period. The VCTs’ investment, combined with the strategic vision of the management team and its unerring focus on quality of service, has created long-term shareholder value, which is now being realised. The offer from Elanders is compelling for both Gresham House Ventures and MRG’s management team and will deliver long-term continuity for Bishopsgate’s staff and customers.

Tim Bloch, managing director at Bishopsgate, said:

“Our relationship with Gresham House Ventures has been a major driver of a long period of growth for Master Removers Group and Bishopsgate, and we are grateful for its longstanding support and close guidance over the last nine years. We are aligned in believing that now is the time for Bishopsgate to continue its journey under new ownership and Elanders is ideally positioned to take the business forward over the coming years.”

 

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