Eastlake Group merges with Work Inc in £8 million deal

Sep 2 2008 By Greig Cameron

Office fit out and property services merger creates major UK player

OFFICE fit out and property services business Eastlake Group has merged with English rival Work Inc in an s8m deal to create a major player in the UK.

David Eastlake, 45, will be chief executive of the combined group in which he has a majority shareholding and Work Incs chief executive Craig Eastwood will be executive chairman.

East Kilbride based Eastlake was created through a management buyout of Georgesons, led by David Eastlake in  2003,  and has since tripled staff numbers to more than 180.

The new company, branded Eastlake Work Group, will have a combined turnover of s75 million and employ 500 people across its eight regional locations in East Kilbride, Leeds, Belfast, Manchester, Cardiff, Newcastle, Nottingham and London.

It also has facilities management staff located on site with clients across the country.

The new company, which will be headquartered in East Kilbride with a second main office in Leeds, has a portfolio of blue chip clients including American Airlines, Deloitte, RBS, HBOS, KPMG, and Marks & Spencer.

Eastlake said: "Craig and I have known each other for many years, and in fact worked together earlier in our careers. 

We have kept in touch as our businesses developed, but it wasn't until we met up in May this year that the subject of Eastlake Group and Work Inc coming together developed.

 There are a number of similarities between the two businesses, both of which have been subject to MBOs in the last decade and grown both organically and via acquisition thereafter.

We had operated successfully in the same sector, but geographically our core areas were in different parts of the UK - so together we cover the entire country. I am absolutely delighted that the deal has taken place, and I believe Eastlake Work Group can offer a tremendous value proposition to UK businesses.

Craig Eastwood said: "Our two businesses were meant for each other. It is remarkable how alike we are, both operationally and in ethos.

The deal was funded by Royal Bank of Scotland.

Jim McIntyre, RBS's regional director of corporate banking in the west of Scotland, said: Eastlake has achieved considerable growth since the MBO four years ago and we are confident that the union of these two very impressive management teams will create a business that can benefit from its scale to reach new heights.

Together, these businesses have the contacts, customer base, and order books to succeed in gaining even greater market share.