Handmade gift specialists Ellie Ellie represented the perfect acquisition for Regency Hampers, allowing them to broaden their product offering and customer base whilst using existing skills sets.

Having acted as accountant and tax advisor for a number of years to Gloucestershire based Regency Hampers Ltd, we were able to provide support and advice to brothers Neil and Dan Perkin from initial discussions through to completion of the acquisition in January 2022.

Established in 2001, Regency Hampers has evolved into one of the largest luxury hampers and premium gift suppliers in the UK. The company specialises in both corporate and personal hampers and gifts whilst priding itself on excellent service and commitment to quality.

Neil and Dan have experienced how successful a strategy of acquisitive growth can be, following their acquisition of MouseHouse Gifts in 2010. Ellie Ellie represented a great strategic fit for Regency Hampers as it not only allowed the organisation to expand both its product offering and customer base, critically, it afforded access to additional key e-commerce sales platforms.

When assessing the potential acquisition of Ellie Ellie, we worked closely with Neil and Dan to ensure the transaction represented their best interests strategically, financially and operationally. Through implementing our well established acquisition transaction process we were able to ensure our clients had a good understanding of how each step would work.

When a business is brought to the market, it is critical to understand the value to the buyer. In order for Neil and Dan to feel confident they understood the value and were able to provide a fair offer, we provided a valuation report. Following the completion of the report, we had a series of conference calls that helped shape the structure and key commercial terms of the deal. This allowed us to move through negotiations with clear ‘red lines’ already outlined, thus allowing them to agree Heads of Terms.

Regency Hampers also instructed us to undertake the financial due diligence. Neil and Dan wanted to understand the business in depth so that they could ascertain that the acquisition of Ellie Ellie was viable. In addition to providing a detailed due diligence report we were then able to follow this up with honest, straightforward verbal advice on areas for consideration for further negotiations, along with points that needed to be reflected in legal documentation and at the integration stages.

Finally, we assisted our clients in concluding the terms of the transaction. As Regency Hampers are also existing tax clients, Rob Case provided comprehensive tax advice working alongside the Corporate Finance team. Because of this all-encompassing service, Neil and Dan received peace of mind that every last detail of their acquisition of Ellie Ellie was considered allowing every chance of success.