In Rural West Cork
according to the latest filed accounts. EBITDA that year was €2m and net worth was €2.4m, so the four founders will have done very well from the trade sale, and they remain in place. The CCPC ruled that competition concerns don’t arise as combined market share is under 15%.
A larger takeover in the same space was NYSE-listed ABM Industries’ acquisition of Momentum Support in April 2022. Colin Maybin (67) established Momentum in 1982 and grew the cleaning and security services business to over 2,500 people on the payroll. The Maybin family’s Blueglade Ltd, which accounted for three Momentum subsidiaries acquired by ABM, had turnover of €63m in 2021 and reported a gross profit of €14m, a margin of 22%.
Operating profit was €6.9m and net worth in December 2021 was €14m. That was after the company paid €11.3m in December 2021 to buy back and cancel shares owned by Nicholas, Rebecca and Andrew Maybin. At the time of ABM transaction, Blueglade’s shareholders were Colin Maybin (73.6%), with Nicholas, Rebecca and Andrew Maybin each owning stakes of 8.8%.
In May 2022, Tommy Kelly, the e-commerce fulfilment multimillionaire, acquired estate agent Sherry FitzGerald through his vehicle Castlegate Investments. Press speculation centred on a deal value of €40m to €50m. Sherry Fitz had revenue of €25m in 2020, down from €30m the prior year due to Covid lockdowns disrupting the property market. However, cash generated from operations through 2020 was €9.4m, triple the outcome the previous year.
The company’s main shareholders were Mark FitzGerald (37.2%), Michael Grehan (8.7%), Sheila O’Flynn (7.7%), Clair Cullinan (5.7%), Simon Ensor (5.1%) and Marian Finnegan (3.0%). The company’s other shareholder was Sherry FitzGerald Nominee Ltd (32.7%), whose shareholders include various employees of the estate agent.
Michael J. Scannell (86) set his children up nicely by establishing MJ Scannell Safety in 1981. After four decades under family ownership, in November 2022 the personal protection equipment vendor was acquired by French buyer Groupe RG. Based in Stillorgan in Dublin, Scannell Safety also has an outlet in Cork.
The Covid pandemic was good for the company, with turnover zooming by 70% through 2020 to €23.8m due to demand for PPE. The gross profit margin on sales was 40%, up from 33% the previous year. Five directors — Michael Scannell and four
of his children — were rewarded with remuneration of €4.6m compared with €395,000 the previous year. The Covid PPE bump continued into 2021, when turnover was €24.6m, though gross profit margin reduced to 28%. Directors’ pay fell back too to €3m. The business was owned equally by Gavin (50), Niall (52), Ruth (51) and Rachel Scannell (48).
A smaller deal in the workwear sector was Portwest’s acquisition of Westaro Hosing in Castlebar, owned equally by directors John Lavelle (68) and Vincent Kenny (66) and employing 20 people. Westaro had net worth of €4.3m in December 2021 after booking a net profit of €640,000.
Another family SME that found a new owner was Galway Plant and Tool Hire (GPT), acquired by Texas buyer Briggs Equipment in September 2022. Operating from eight sites, GPT employs c.90 people and has been trading since 1969. GPT was majority owned by members of the Hughes family, and Yvonne Hackett. Turnover in FY21 was c.€18m and operating profit was c.€2.9m. Jim Hughes (80), GPT founder and director, commented: “I am extremely proud of the success that GPT has had in the marketplace over the past 53 years.”
Carl Gaywood (38), from Beckenham in Kent, effected a quick enough turn with Switcher.ie, which he established in November 2016. The price comparison site for broadband, energy, mobile, money and mortgages was acquired by Mediahuis, the Belgian owner of the Irish Independent and other newspapers, in October 2022.
Switcher had turnover of €2.9m in 2021 and booked a net profit of €715,000. Net current assets in December 2021 were €1.5m, including €910,000 balance sheet cash. Gaywood’s enterprise was rewarded with a dividend of €350,000.