Newport-based Premier Forest Group has announced the sale of its eight-site Irish subsidiary, Premier Forest ROI, comprising Brooks Timber and Building Supplies and Dublin Plywood and Veneer (DPV).
The sale, for an undisclosed sum, is to Murdock Builders Merchants in Northern Ireland, and covers the trading assets, goodwill and freehold properties. The deal is subject to Competition Commission approval.
PFG acquired Brooks in 2012 and DPV in 2013 as Ireland emerged from the property crash recession.
Co-founder and CEO Terry Edgell commented: “Over the past 12 months we have had various approaches about the possibility of selling our Irish subsidiaries. After careful consideration we felt that the time was right to hand the reins to an Irish company to steer them through their next phase of growth.
“This is a positive step for the Premier Forest Group, one which allows us to consolidate our position by giving us significant resource to reinvest in our staff and our business and drive growth in the UK through investment and further acquisitions.”
In Association with
Ciaran Murdock of Murdocks stated: “Since establishing Murdock Builders Merchants in 1982, we have gradually built the Murdocks business by opening new branches along with some single site acquisitions. Today’s announcement marks an important strategic move in significantly broadening our footprint in the Republic, through the Brooks business. We believe that this provides us with a great platform for further expansion in Ireland.
Brooks, which was originally established in 1750, returns to Irish ownership for the first time since 1982.
Gambit Corporate Finance LLP acted as lead advisor to the PFG. Acuity Law were lead lawyers for the vendors, supported by Flynn O’Driscoll on Irish law matters.
Established in 1993, Premier Forest Group says it has increased turnover by £31m to £170m over the past 12 months. The company operates from eight sites in England and Wales as a vertically integrated timber operation engaged in the importation, sawmilling, processing, merchanting, and wholesale distribution of timber and timber products.
Photo: Premier Forest Group directors Terry Edgell, Nigel Williams and Dilwyn Howells
