Corporate Finance

Waterfront Fluid Controls engaged with Armstrong Watson to assist in an acquisition deal with Jash Engineering Ltd. This was a complex deal due to the new majority shareholder being based and registered in India. Not only did this make things slightly more complex we added into the mix an 80% shareholding and not a full 100% take over.

Due diligence processes were undertaken and with the guidance of Ellis Kerton in particular we successfully gained the approval of the auditor and legal teams. Ellis worked very closely with our accountant here in WFC and with a lot of hard work and long hours we met our timescale targets to everyone’s satisfaction.

As a well established and profitable electronic components manufacturer based in the North East , the shareholders had reached a stage in life when it was apparent a company sale was required. They approached David Wilson who was very responsive in finding potential buyers. Agreement with the first potential buyer chosen did not progress due to the final terms of their offer being insufficient. The second buyer, a private equity company, had a prolonged due diligence process which required considerable tenacity and astute negotiation to navigate. David and his team were admirable throughout and successfully concluded the sale.

Working with Armstrong Watson on our financial forecast has been very useful over the past few years. They developed a very comprehensive model which allows us to track our performance over 5 years and plan future investments and impact on profit and budget accordingly. They customised it to our needs and have been responsive to our feedback – adding or amending things as needed.

Andy, Jordan and the team are easy to deal with, provide always a timescale and deliver their work on time. I would recommend them to other firms who are looking into improving their profitability and keeping their finances organised.

We engaged Andy Poole of Armstrong Watson to facilitate a series of three strategy days for our senior leadership team and the wider partner group. This has helped us to formulate clear objectives and defined short, medium and long-term steps to achieve our ambitions.

It has helped us to become closer as a leadership team, improve communication channels across the firm and focus us on the actions we need to continue taking our business forwards. Andy was flexible enough to allow all attendees to have their input, whilst keeping us on track and challenging us as required. One of the attendees commented that it was “the most impactful day they had ever spent”.

It was a pleasure to work with the Corporate Finance, Tax and Audit teams at Armstrong Watson during our acquisition of Finlaysons Contracts. A proactive, pragmatic and collaborative approach ensured that the opportunity was presented in the best way for all parties and the skills of the Armstrong Watson team, along with their strict attention to detail, instilled great confidence in the process. While I don’t plan on buying another business for a while, I would certainly have no problem doing it all again with this team.

My biggest concern was that my competitors and those that commissioned services would find out that I was selling. Alison and Catherine assured me that everything was done confidentially and the name of my business would not be released until it was absolutely necessary. True to their word nobody found out about the sale of my business until it was signed sealed and delivered.

There are times when I would have given up if it was not for the support of Alison and Catherine. They dealt with the purchaser making it as easy a process as is possible. If ever I should have another business to sell I would certainly use them again and recommend them to anyone wishing to sell their business.

Having faced a number of approaches from law firms and companies over the years to acquire Pryers, it was important for us to wait patiently for the right opportunity with the right company to forge ahead with. Pure Legal undoubtedly presents that opportunity and I am delighted to get this deal over the line and I look forward to working with Phil and his team.

Thanks to our Accountant, Andy Poole and his team from Armstrong Watson, for their diligent work. We were genuinely impressed with their advice and representation.