DTE Corporate Finance provided buy side advisory services to Canadian Private Equity Fund

DTE Corporate Finance provided buy side advisory services to the Canadian Private Equity Fund, Ardenton Capital on the acquisition of two businesses, by its portfolio company, BGC Wholesale.

BGC Wholesale is an independent wholesaler of greetings cards and associated products, operating through a network of nine branches across the UK and Ireland, with their HQ based in Manchester.

The two businesses that BGC Wholesale has acquired are the trade and assets of Paul White Ltd, a wholesaler of partyware and balloons, and Tiger Feet Limited, an online retailer of partyware and balloons.

The transaction was led by DTE’s Jon Else, Corporate Finance Director who worked alongside Heeral Ruparelia, Corporate Finance Executive.

Jon and Heeral advised on the deal structure, assisted in the negotiations with the seller, and project managed all workstreams through to successful completion. The team also performed financial due diligence on the two target businesses on behalf of the buyer, and their funder, Virgin Money.

Jon and Heeral worked closely with Akhtar Zahid, CEO of BGC Wholesale, and Michael Bradbury, CEO of Ardenton Capital, together with Keith Melling and Jo Cooper of Napthens LLP who provided legal advice to the buyers.

The acquisitions are strategic decisions to broaden BGC Wholesale’s offering throughout the UK. CEO Akhtar Zahid, expressed his thanks to DTE, “The DTE team were fantastic in their support to us in ensuring a smooth and successful transaction. The acquisition had a number of challenges, but DTE were a genuine partner so acted in our best interests, as well as getting to know our business well. Jon and Heeral managed to get a really good understanding of what was important to us.”

Jon Else commented, “We really enjoyed working with Akhtar and Mike on the acquisition and we are grateful for the work done by the Napthens team to get the transaction over the line. I am sure the combination of these businesses and the enhanced product offering for their customers will prove to be a great success.”