Acquisition(s)
14 September 2011
St Ives plc - Acquisition
St Ives plc ("St Ives" or "the Group") is pleased to announce the acquisition
of Response One Holdings Limited ("Response One").
The acquisition of Response One represents a further step in St Ives's strategy
to create a complementary range of digital and marketing services, whilst
reducing exposure to commoditised print markets and to enable the Group to add
further value to existing and new clients.
Established in 1998, Response One is one of the UK's leading and fastest
growing data marketing businesses. The business helps its clients design and
deliver effective customer and prospect communications through more intelligent
use of data. Principal services include specialist media buying and sales; data
quality insight and strategic campaign planning; and print management. By
integrating these services into a single solution, Response One has created a
unique offering that has transformed multi-channel marketing activities for
organisations across the UK. The business employs approximately 70 staff, is
headquartered in Bath and has a strong client base including a number of FTSE
100 companies and household names.
In the financial year ended 31 October 2010, Response One generated underlying*
EBITDA of £1.9 million and a profit before tax of £1.5 million on revenue of £
19.1 million; gross assets were £8.7 million. Response One is expected to
generate underlying* EBITDA of approximately £2.5 million on revenue of £25.0
million for the year ended 31 October 2011 (* before items of a one-off
nature).
St Ives has agreed to acquire all of the issued share capital of Response One,
on a cash and debt free basis, for a multiple of 6.5x the audited EBITDA of
Response One for the year ending 31 October 2011, subject to a cap of £19
million.
The vendors are Patrick Sargeant and Tim Calvert-Jones, the founders and
majority shareholders, together with other employees. Approximately 70% of the
consideration payable will be in cash with the balance to be satisfied by the
issue of up to approximately 7.5 million new St Ives ordinary shares.
It is expected that the acquisition will be earnings enhancing in the current
financial year.
Following the acquisition, Response One will operate as a subsidiary of St Ives
and will continue to be managed by the existing management team from its
current premises.
Patrick Martell, Chief Executive of St Ives said:
"Response One is an excellent fit with our growing portfolio of marketing
services offerings and will give us the opportunity to sell a wider range of
services across a broader customer group. The acquisition significantly
enhances and extends the data based offering we are able to provide to clients
enabling them to maximise returns from their marketing campaigns. I am
delighted to welcome Response One to the St Ives Group."
- Ends -
For further information please contact:
St Ives plc 020 7928 8844
Patrick Martell, Chief Executive
Matt Armitage, Finance Director
MHP Communications 020 3128 8100
John Olsen / Ian Payne / Giles Robinson
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