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TECHNOLOGY REPORT

Succession and selling up

B areas that may affect the valuation, type of purchaser, or
ut what are the considerations for such own-
funder for the transaction.
ers looking to the future? How can they plan
ahead and what are the core issues to apply
There are stories of thought to? But who?
print company own- The subject needs to be examined from There are multiple routes to an exit. The first, as
ers moving on and the legal and tax perspective. Printweek spoke to two Summers highlights, is a trade or competitor purchaser.
selling up. And there experts for their advice and suggestions. This, she says, is the most traditional method of sale
where “the business is marketed and ultimately sold to a
are accounts of indi- trade purchaser. They may be a competitor, an expanding
viduals dying leaving THE LEGAL PERSPECTIVE company or an overseas operation looking for a UK enter-
survivors to deal with prise”.
Next is a sale to private equity. This is a sale is made to a
the firm’s future. The It’s all about the why private equity group which acquires the shares in the
reality is that no small According to Freya Summers, corporate partner at company. Of this Summers says that “typically, private
privately held busi- Wright Hassall, those looking to move their business on equity groups will buy mature proven businesses with
need to think about why they’re looking for change. As
ness will stay static she says, “understanding the motivations for sale – retire- demonstrable growth strategies”.
forever; change in ment, de-risking or seeking additional funding for growth Then there’s the management buy-out, the acquisition
ownership is inevita- – will determine how to approach the project”. of a company by its existing management team often sup-
ported either by private equity finance or by traditional
From then on, as soon as discussion around the sale
ble. starts to take shape, Summers believes that engaging institutional debt finance.
experienced advisers early in the process is essential so as Another option that Summers points to is an employee
Words by to “allow plenty of time to assess an exit strategy and ownership trust. Akin to a management buyout, it differs
afford time for a thorough review of the business”. in that “an employee ownership trust transfers the shares
Adam Bernstein
Experience has taught her that this will identify potential in the company to a trust established for the benefit of all

26 PrintWeek MENA May 2024 www.printweekmena.com