We have recently advised St Helen’s based Assist Group, an established provider of grounds maintenance, arboriculture and highway services, on its sale to idverde, a private company headquartered in Paris and backed by Belgium-based investment firm Core Equity Holdings.
Assist provides a wide range of services, employing over 200 colleagues across the public sector, including Local Authorities, Central Government, Defence and Social Housing. With a market leading technology platform and innovative working practices, Assist has delivered an impressive track record of achieving significant growth year on year, principally in the North West and Midlands area of England.
idverde is Europe’s leading provider of Green Services with turnover in excess of €500m, employing 5,500 employees throughout France, Holland and the UK, where it is also the market leader in each of the respective Countries in which it operates.
This acquisition will strengthen idverde’s regional presence and enable Assist to capitalise on its growing market reputation by working with a partner that can provide a national platform and complementary skill set. The combined capabilities will support clients with a broader range of service offering, both locally and nationally.
Ian Johnson, Head of the Corporate Finance comments; “idverde is a great fit for Assist Group, offering significant opportunities to expand national presence whilst sharing common values towards client service. It has been a pleasure to work with the management team to help them achieve their goals and we look forward to observing the developments of this strategic acquisition.”
Dave Dargan, Founder and CEO of Assist Group comments; “This is exiting news for everyone at Assist, the business has been on a fantastic journey which has seen us achieve impressive growth in our markets with new and existing clients. I am immensely proud of what we have achieved and am excited about what the future holds for our colleagues and customers. The time comes for a new chapter and as part of my planned exit from Assist it was important that we found the right partner who shared the strong people and customer service values that we hold dear and I’m confident that idverde will be an excellent platform for the business to continue its exciting journey. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all my friends, colleagues and customers at Assist for their unbelievable support and dedication over the last 18 years.”
Doug Graham, CEO of idverde UK commented: “We are pleased to welcome our new colleagues from Assist into the idverde family. The company shares many common values with those of idverde, is forward thinking and has enjoyed impressive growth in recent times. This has resulted in long-term contracts being secured with a number of key high-profile clients.”
We have worked closely with Assist Group and Dave Dargan for over 15 years. Peter Bibby from AB Corporate advised on the legal aspects.
Disclaimer
The information was correct at time of publishing but may now be out of date.
