The deal will see Goodman transition to become chief executive over the next 18-24 months. Current chief executive and York Mailing co-founder Chris Ingram becomes chairman, while managing director Mike Newbould becomes interim chief executive.
The MBO deal also includes seven members of the senior management team: group sales director Norman Revill, Lettershop joint managing directors Simon Cooper and Dave McGolpin, York Mailing managing director Peter Greaves, group commercial director Richard Booth, Adrian Scott the managing director of Go Direct Marketing and Lee Richardson who is now the group finance director.
The terms of the deal were not disclosed, although industry sources have cited circa £27m with a figure as high as £50m also mooted. Ingram declined to comment on the specifics.
He told PrintWeek: “We felt this was an opportunity to widen the stakeholders, but we didn’t want to bring another private equity house into it.
“This allows the key management team to participate in the future prosperity of the company going forward. Our priority is that the business continues to prosper and investment progress is maintained.”
Goodman, who joined the group in February 2014, said the fast-growing business had excellent customer relationships and a strong sales pipeline: “The management team are excited by this opportunity and delighted to have the support of Pricoa, Chris, Mike and the BGF.”
The Business Growth Fund, which invested £10m in the group in July 2013 for a 20% stake in the business, has reduced its holding but remains a minority investor, as do Ingram and Newbould.
As a result Richard Connell, the external chairman brought in with the BGF deal will stand down, Ingram said.
In the year to 31 May 2014 York Mailing Group posted consolidated sales of £91.7m and made an operating profit of £3.7m.
The MBO announcement cited sales of more than £100m and a 50% increase in EBITDA to £12m.
“Last year we had our best year and we will improve upon those numbers quite significantly this year,” Ingram stated.
He said the potential for a trade sale of the business had been rejected. “We didn’t consider there was a realistic proposition of anyone in the UK buying it, and weren’t convinced that an overseas buyer would be the right thing for the business.”
Ingram also quashed talk of retirement: “I’ve been doing a presentation to a major customer this morning. I’m definitely not disappearing totally, but I might take a little bit more time out.”
York Mailing acquired Pindar’s Scarborough web offset business in July 2011, the Lettershop Group in the summer of 2013, and Go Direct Marketing last autumn.
The firm was PrintWeek’s Company of the Year in 2008.
Its product range includes press finished products for retailers, catalogues, direct mail, and multi-channel marketing solutions.
