£150m global pest control specialist bought out by investment house as it looks to futher US growth
A global pest control leader based in North Yorkshire has been bought out by a London equity house.
Knaresborough-headquartered Pelsis Group is to be acquired by specialist investment manager Pamplona Capital Management next month.
The company has a turnover of £150 million, employing 600 people across 15 sites across Western Europe and the US – developing products from mosquito traps to mole repellers.
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For the past four years it has been owned by Lloyds Development Capital, the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group.
In that time chief executive Andrew Milner has concluded three international acquisitions, with US and French manufactururers added in the past six months.
He said: “We are very excited to begin this new chapter for Pelsis together with Pamplona.
“Pamplona will actively support Pelsis in achieving our shared goals and growing further into the US and Europe, consolidating our position as a market leader and introducing new, innovative products to the market.
(Image: PA)
“Having met the Pamplona team, we look forward to working with them in driving the company’s further success.”
Established in 1984, Pelsis owns a portfolio of trade, professional and consumer brands including Edialux, Insect-O-Cutor, B&G, Curtis Dyna-Fog and Pest-Stop. In addition, the company has a wide customer base including Rentokil, Ecolab, Screwfix and Amazon.
Pamplona co-managing partner, Martin Schwab, said: “We are looking forward to partnering with Andrew and the management team of Pelsis and are impressed by the work they have done to build the company into an attractive growth platform in recent years.
“As a global leader in the highly resilient pest control market, we believe Pelsis is very well positioned to take advantage of the strong trend towards greater focus on health and hygiene, and continued growth and development of the pest control industry.
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“Pamplona’s track record in supporting management teams in executing their strategic ambitions across both sides of the Atlantic and experience in carrying out bolt-on acquisitions ideally position us to support Pelsis for the next stage of growth.”
Pamplona was established in 2005, providing an alternative investment platform across private equity and other diversified strategies. With further offices in New York, Madrid, and Malta, Pamplona manages assets of around £8 billion.
Dale Alderson, head of the North West at Lloyds, said: “We have greatly enjoyed our time working with Andrew and the team during the last four years to establish Pelsis as a leader, with international presence, in the global pest control industry.
“We are excited for their next chapter with Pamplona and wish both great success in achieving their growth ambitions.”
Pamplona was advised by Houlihan Lokey and William Blair on finance, with Kirkland & Ellis providing legal advice. LDC’s financial adviser was Rothschild, with DLA Piper on legals.