Christie Group PLC Sale of Wyevale Garden Centres

TIDMCTG

Christie Group PLC

22 May 2018

22 May 2018

Christie Group plc

("Christie Group" or the "Company")

Christie & Co appointed to support Terra Firma on the sale of Wyevale Garden Centres

Christie Group plc (CTG.L), the leading provider of Professional Business Services and Stock & Inventory Systems and Services to the leisure, retail and care markets, is pleased to announce that Christie & Co, its specialist provider of agency and advisory services, has been appointed to advise on the potential sale of Wyevale Garden Centres, following today's announcement by Terra Firma, the private equity fund.

This high-quality portfolio of 145 garden centres, ranges from horticultural centres to major leisure destination venues. Located across the UK but with a weighting towards the South East of England, the sites range in size from one to 132 acres and are profitable standalone business opportunities. Wyevale Garden Centres have invested significantly in the business and the majority of sites have high specification restaurants and cafes, many with children's soft play areas. There are extensive opportunities to enhance the existing operation by introducing further income generating activity on each site.

Chris Day, Global Managing Director at Christie & Co comments, "The garden centre market is vibrant and on an upwards trajectory. In recent years garden centres have become much more than places just to buy plants, evolving to become wider leisure and retail destinations with play centres for children, restaurants and other activities designed to improve the shopping experience. These attractive consumer fundamentals with multiple income streams mean the market is likely to be resilient to headwinds experienced by the high-street."

"The sale of Wyevale Garden Centres presents a unique opportunity for a wide range of buyers from financial institutions, existing garden centre operators, independent business people and entrepreneurs to buy well invested local garden centres within the price range of GBP200k to GBP35m. Financial institutions will be attracted to a strong business that is a platform for consolidation of the sector. Entrepreneurs will be particularly attracted into a market with the prospect of enhancing an already resilient income stream by adding their own profitable activities into underutilised ancillary space which has a multitude of potential uses. Current garden centre operators seeking to compliment or improve their existing business will also be attracted to the disposal, as opportunities of this quality rarely come to the market."

Roger Mclaughlan, CEO of Wyevale Garden Centres adds, "This investment provides a fantastic opportunity for new long-term owners looking to enter the market and existing operators seeking to expand their current operations. Wyevale Garden Centres has been transformed beyond recognition over the last few years, and our customers are responding really positively to all the improvements we've been making, with improved ranges, high stock availability and exceptional garden centre standards. Our improved business has engaged colleagues and put customers at the heart of what we do. Thanks to the hard work of all of our colleagues, we remain firmly on track to grow our sales and profits this year."

Enquiries:

Christie Group plc

 
     Chris Day                                                                            020 7227 0777 
      Christie & Co Global 
      Managing Director 
 
     David Rugg                                                                           020 7227 0707 
     Chairman & Chief Executive 
 
     Dan Prickett                                                                         020 7227 0700 
     Chief Operating Officer 
 

Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited:

Dominic Morley / Charles Leigh-Pemberton 020 7886 2906

Nominated Adviser & Broker

Notes to Editors:

Christie Group plc, quoted on AIM, is a leading professional business services group with 44 offices across the UK, Europe and Canada, catering to its specialist markets in the leisure, retail and care sectors.

Christie Group operates in two complementary business divisions: Professional Business Services (PBS) and Stock & Inventory Systems & Services (SISS). These divisions trade under the brand names: PBS - Christie & Co, Pinders, Christie Finance and Christie Insurance: SISS - Orridge, Venners and Vennersys.

Tracing its origins back to 1846, the Group has a long-established reputation for offering essential services to client companies in agency, valuation services, investment, consultancy, project management, multi-functional trading systems and online ticketing services, stock audit and inventory management. The diversity of these services provides a natural balance to the Group's core agency business.

For more information, please go to www.christiegroup.com.

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact [e-mail] or visit www.rns.com.

END

NRAPGUWAAUPRGUP

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 22, 2018 06:54 ET (10:54 GMT)