Member Article

SKG clean up with £1m White Knight acquisition

Secure Trust Bank Commercial Finance and SKG Capital have provided £1m worth of funding and investment to support the acquisition of White Knight Laundry Services, a specialist provider of laundry services to international hotel chains.

The joint equity funding and asset based lending facility marks the second transaction that Secure Trust Bank and SKG have completed in the laundry sector, following the £4m backing of AAA Linen in November 2014.

Established in 1904, White Knight works with over 2,000 domestic and business customers, including a number of international hotels. The company, which operates from sites in Reading and Eastbourne, employs 100 staff and recorded turnover of £5m in the year to December 2015.

This latest transaction is part of SKG’s buy-and-build strategy to develop one of the UK’s leading providers of laundry services. SKG is a privately owned investment firm providing funds to help transform and grow SMEs. The firm is currently seeking further bolt-on acquisitions to add to its growing portfolio.

Secure Trust Bank Commercial Finance, which provides a full range of asset based lending facilities from £500,000 to £30m, is well positioned to support such transactions through its approach which leads on service, flexibility, and gaining a deep understanding of the business and management’s future requirements.

Stephen Lloyd, Portfolio Partner at SKG Capital, said: “White Knight opened its doors more than 100 years ago and operates one of the most established laundry services across London and the South East. The combined experience of the management team, along with the commitment from its workforce, presented an ideal opportunity for us to expand our portfolio of laundry businesses and become one of the leading providers in the industry.

“It has been a pleasure working in partnership with the team at Secure Trust Bank for the second time – they completely understood the needs of the business and were able to provide a tailored funding solution in a very short space of time.”

Sean Powell, National Sales Director at Secure Trust Bank Commercial Finance, said: “We are really pleased to have offered our continued support to SKG as they target further investment opportunities. This is seen as a great testament to not only our ability to structure funding to support acquisitions, but also our ability to provide an excellent service to our portfolio of clients. White Knight is a great opportunity for the team and SKG and we’re really looking forward to working with both businesses over the next few years.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Jasper Stone .