Tue, 23 Jul 2024 | BUSINESS SALE
Standguide Group, a training firm based in Ashton-Under-Lyne, has become 100 per cent employee-owned. The company’s move to employee ownership was advised on by the specialist employee ownership trust (EOT) team at North West law firm Brabners.
Standguide Group provides employment, education and health-related training services in the UK for organisations including the NHS, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Ministry of Justice.
The firm was founded by George Bains and Phil Slater in 1990 before being acquired by CEO Mark Owen-Long and CFO Jim Gambles in a management buyout in 2018. Since the MBO, the business has grown from 80 employees to more than 300.
The company has said that the move to employee ownership will maintain its independence, while providing a long-term succession plan for the business.
CEO Mark Owen-Long stated that Standguide was “above all [...] a people-centric business" with several staff members that had been with the firm for more than 25 years and that, despite numerous approaches to acquire the company, “we wanted to ensure continuity for our staff and customers.”
He continued that Brabners had introduced Standguide to the option of employee ownership and that the company felt it was “the perfect way to preserve the culture and values of the business for the long term” and would enable the firm to “grow and prosper long into the future”.
The move comes amid a significant increase in the popularity of employee ownership and Brabners has advised on more than 50 employee ownership transactions over the past four years.
Stephen Hadlow, partner in Brabners’ corporate team, said: “There are so many reasons that employee ownership is the fastest growing business ownership model across the UK, not least because it protects the culture and independence of flourishing businesses.”
“We’re delighted to have supported Standguide in its move to employee ownership. Human capital is at the beating heart of Standguide’s business, and the EO model will help prioritise employees’ interests whilst delivering a stable succession plan for Mark and Jim.”
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