Businesses based across the North West have announced a range of high-profile deals in the last week.
Household names such as N Brown and Victorian Plumbing are among those to have hit the headlines.
Below, BusinessLive rounds up the latest deals that we feel you should not miss.
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If you have a new deal that you would like featured in our next round up, please e-mail jon.robinson@reachplc.com.
N Brown
The retail giant behind the likes of Sports Direct and House of Fraser has taken a stake in a Manchester-headquartered fashion group.
Frasers Group, which was established by billionaire Mike Ashley, has snapped up a 4.54% stake in N Brown, according to newly-filed documents with the London Stock Exchange.
N Brown's brands include Simply Be, JD Williams and Jacamo.
Frasers Group, which is now run by Mr Ashley's son-in-law Michael Murray, also counts the likes of Jack Wills, Evans Cycles, Everlast and Flannels among its brands.
Evgen Pharma
Shares in a clinical stage drug development have more than doubled in value after it revealed a $160.5m deal.
Evgen Pharma, which is listed on AIM and has bases in Liverpool and Wimslow, has licensed the global rights for lead asset SFX-01 in neurodevelopmental disorders and schizophrenia to Stalicla SA.
The Swiss company specialises in the identification of specific phenotypes of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
After the deal was announced, shares in Evgen Pharma surged by more than 107%.
Connex One
A former investor in Spotify has helped a Manchester-based AI tech firm raise more than £90m.
Connex One has secured over £93m in Series C funding from GP Bullhound and other unnamed investors.
The company said the extra funding will enable it to "continue to scale its global operations and further establish its position as a market leader".
Connex One was founded in 2013 by brothers Nick and Richard Mealey and works with the likes of 02, Gousto and Hub Energy.
Victorian Plumbing
The billionaire founder of online bathroom retailer Victorian Plumbing has increased his stake in the business.
Mark Radcliffe, who is already the largest shareholder in the firm, has upped his holding from 46.57% to 47.09%, according to newly-filed documents with the London Stock Exchange.
The chief executive is by far the biggest single shareholder in the company, with Neil Radcliffe second with a stake of 9.3%.
Firstcom Europe
Bolton-based telecoms company Firstcom Europe has acquired Calteq Ltd, which is located in Hertfordshire and Suffolk.
The deal adds an extra £6.2m of turnover and £1.2m of EBITDA to the Firstcom group and expands both its UK geographical reach and range of products.
Firstcom Europe CEO Christian Bleakley said: "I am looking forward to working with Calteq who have been successfully trading for 19 years and have built up a great reputation and a loyal customer base with strong revenues.
"Their expertise in offering multi-site and bespoke solutions will complement our unified communications products and enhance our ability to grow the business organically."
Mike Stephenson, founder and director of Calteq, added: "One of the reasons we were keen to join with Firstcom is the opportunities it provides my colleagues to progress.
"With Firstcom Europe’s product set, our customers will be able to transition seamlessly to cloud based solutions, meaning both my colleagues and our customers will benefit.
"I am looking forward to working with the team as the enlarged business delivers on its ambitious growth targets."
Keenans Group
A North West estate and letting agent has expanded into West Lancashire with a swoop for a Preston-based business.
Keenans Group has acquired Letting Locations for an undisclosed sum.
Letting Locations, which trades as Guildhall Residential Lettings, operates from Blackpool Road in Ashton-on-Ribble and has 350 properties under management.
Its managing director Robert Shields is being retained by Keenans on a consultancy basis following the deal.
Keenans is an independent, family-owned group which until now has focused on Greater Manchester and East Lancashire, with 10 branches covering 115 postcodes.
It deals with over 2,500 sales and 400 lettings per year and employs nearly 100 staff.
Lloyd Motor Group
Lloyd Motor Group has acquired the Volvo Cars business in Levens, near Kendal.
The business will be renamed Lloyd South Lakes – Volvo Cars, and will welcome customers across the south Cumbria and north Lancashire regions.
Completion of the acquisition from P.V. Dobson follows closely after Lloyd Motor Group acquired its Lloyd Kia South Lakes site in Morecambe.
Lloyd South Lakes – Volvo Cars is the business’ second Volvo Cars retailer having originally represented the manufacturer in Cockermouth since 1977 before later moving to Carlisle. Lloyd Motor Group has over four decades of experience with Volvo Cars.
Redmoor Health
Palatine has made a "significant investment" in digital healthcare services partner Redmoor Health.
Founded in 2017, Chorley-based Redmoor Health is a partner of the NHS and provides a range of services from design and project management to implementation and analytics.
Redmoor has secured investment from Palatine’s Impact Fund, which backs commercially driven businesses with a mission to positively impact society or the environment.
Founder and CEO Marc Schmid said: "We’ve grown the business to 30 staff over five years without investment but believe Palatine will take us to the next stage of our growth journey.
"We were approached by 13 different investors but found that Palatine best matched our values, culture and commitment to improve healthcare and the environment.
"The pandemic highlighted the value that technology can make to healthcare and we look forward to accelerating our growth with Palatine as our partner."
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