Granby chiefs seal £4m buyout

Bosses at direct marketing and fulfilment company Granby Marketing Services – whose clients include Sainsbury’s, the ICO and the ECB – have secured a £3.8m management buyout, backed by Enterprise Ventures and NatWest.
The move will see managing director Joanne Varey (pictured) become majority shareholder while Stephen Bentley, who acquired Granby from Omnicom 13 years ago, will become chairman and remain a minority shareholder. Craig Parsons, IT director at Granby, will also become a minority shareholder in the business.
Granby’s services include direct marketing, e-commerce fulfilment, and warehousing and distribution to a blue chip client base which includes Sainsbury’s, CTM, England and Wales Cricket Board, Department for Education and The Information Commissioner’s Office. The company is based in Blackburn and employs over 100 people.
Varey said: “This feels like a natural step for the business to ensure we are evolving and maintaining our position as a market leader. It’s a fantastic opportunity for us to continue building on the growth and success Granby has undergone in recent years. Most importantly, it enables us to ensure we’re still delivering a seamless experience and offering to our existing client base, whilst also giving us the tools and capabilities to seek new revenue prospects.”
Enterprise Ventures provided £1.35m from its EV Growth fund to support the buyout, with the incumbent bank NatWest providing £600,000 term debt alongside a £500,000 working capital facility from RBS Invoice Finance,and the remainder coming from investment by directors.
Enterprise Ventures investment director Wayne Thomas added: “Granby is a profitable, well positioned services business with an impressive, long-standing client base. It has invested heavily in IT over recent years to keep pace with new technologies. With large companies increasingly outsourcing non-core activities such as direct mail and fulfilment, the market is growing and Granby is well placed to take advantage of the opportunities.”