Industrial safety products firm Empteezy Group has been taken over in a management buyout backed by Chiltern Capital.
West Lothian-based Empteezy was founded more than 30 years ago by Bruce Wishart and today has 250 employees operating across Europe. It specialises in designing and manufacturing safety products and solutions in areas from spill control to hazardous waste storage.
The MBO has been led by Empteezy chief executive David Byrne and chief financial officer Jon Hazlewood, with Warwick Ley joining as chair.
Chiltern Capital will support the team with plans to broaden Empteezy’s product and service offering and make further funding available for targeted M&A work.
For the year ended October 31, 2021 the company posted a pre-tax profit of £3.5m, against £2.1m in the previous year. That was achieved on turnover of £44.6m compared to £37.4m in the year before. The terms of the MBO have not been disclosed.
David Byrne said: "It has been 36 years since Bruce launched Empteezy, and the quality of people, strength of the brand and the breadth of the product range, made my decision to join and steer the business, a very easy and exciting one. Working very closely with Chiltern on that journey was also a very attractive proposition."
Bruce Wishart said: "Passing the company on to the existing management was a natural decision, the hard part was finding the right partner to assist with this.
"Chiltern impressed with their supportive approach from the start and the introduction of David Byrne CEO and Jon Hazelwood CFO with Warwick Ley as Chairman gives me full confidence in a bright future. I look forward to supporting them going forward."
David Butler, investment director at Chiltern Capital, added: "Bruce should be incredibly proud of the legacy that he has built, and we feel privileged to be able to support David, Jon and the rest of the management team with their plans for the next chapter. Due to the ever-increasing need for corporates to address their ESG responsibilities, the importance of a company like Empteezy cannot be overstated."
Chiltern was advised by RSM (Financial due diligence), Calash (commercial and environmental due diligence), PHD Property (property due diligence) and Squire Patton Boggs (legals). Bruce Wishart was advised by Aequitas (corporate finance) and Vialex (legals), while management were advised by DWF.
Keith Anderson, CEO of Vialex said: "Bruce Wishart has built an impressive business with an international reach, and I am sure it has a great future under its new ownership. It is a privilege to be involved in a Scottish manufacturing success story and to work alongside James Rodger (Aequitas) and Bruce to achieve an exciting outcome for all concerned."
Don't miss the latest headlines with our twice-daily newsletter - sign up here for free.
