Member Article

LDC backs £20 million secondary buyout of Warrington’s Waterfall

LDC, the mid-market private equity investor, has backed the £20 million secondary buyout of Waterfall, an independent contract caterer.

Waterfall, headquartered in Warrington operates through two brands in Caterplus and Taylor Shaw.

YFM Equity Partners and co-investors Neptune-Calculus, advised by Calculus Capital Limited and Kaye Enterprises have sold their minority stakes in the business making a 5 times return on their original investment.

The existing management team will continue to lead the business.

Waterfall has achieved strong growth since YFM Equity Partners’ original MBO of Caterplus in 2007, delivering a fivefold increase in turnover to £60 million with staff numbers rising from 400 to over 3,000.

LDC has backed the incumbent management team, including Chairman Vince Pearson, CEO Jim Lovett and Finance Director Gabrielle Higham.

The deal was led by Investment Director Richard Ibbett and Jonathan Bell, Director and Head of LDC in the North West, who both join the board at Waterfall.

CEO at Waterfall, Jim Lovett, said: “It has been a whirlwind few years and we have now established ourselves as one of the leading players in our sector.

“YFM, Calculus and Kaye were very supportive and they helped transform the growth of our business, including two acquisitions.

“ Now with LDC, which has a great track record of working with businesses to achieve their growth ambitions, I’m confident that we can kick on and develop our offering to ensure that our customers across the country continue to receive top-class catering services.“

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sophia Taha .