Soho Square Capital LLP (“Soho”), the provider of flexible capital solutions to small and medium-sized companies, announces today that it has supported the financing of a management buyout of north-west England headquartered Pyroguard.
Over the last four years, Pyroguard, a market leading manufacturer of fire-resistant architectural glass, has experienced significant organic growth, which is expected to continue. This new investment will allow the management team of Pyroguard to accelerate their expansion plans in the UK and Europe.
The existing Pyroguard management team will become majority equity shareholders, led by CEO Neil Tilsley with Nick Brayshaw continuing in his role as Chairman. David Steel, Director at Soho Square, joins the Pyroguard Board.
This transaction is structured as a senior-secured loan note with additional equity participation. The deal structure is typical of the highly flexible deals that Soho focuses on. Soho offers bespoke capital structure solutions for European SMEs, with enhanced portfolio company support, solving a financing gap in the market
Pyroguard’s prior backers were Dunedin and NVM.
Neil Tilsley, CEO of Pyroguard, commented: “I am delighted that a forward thinking and proactive investor such as Soho has seen the potential of investing in the future success of Pyroguard. Dunedin and NVM have been highly supportive investors for several years and have played a significant role in making Pyroguard the successful high growth business it is today. Bringing in a new external institutional investor like Soho, who has supported rapid growth across a range of businesses before, will bring not only a fresh perspective but also help us to accelerate our ambitious growth plans. Pyroguard has an exciting future ahead as a result of this new partnership.”
David Steel, Director, Soho: “Pyroguard is already a very successful business, with an experienced management team, a strong presence in a highly technical sector with significant barriers to entry. Given our experience in working with high-growth companies, we see considerable opportunity for Soho Square to support the management team of Pyroguard as it looks to build its market share in this very interesting sector.”
Walid Fakhry, Founding Partner, Soho: “We are pleased to be announcing our Investment in Pyroguard, which sits senior in the capital structure, perfectly demonstrates our strong, flexible financing capabilities and support for ambitious growth companies.”
Soho was advised by K&L Gates. Pyroguard and its shareholders were advised by Clearwater International. Financial due diligence was conducted by PwC and Sentio Insight with tax advice provided by BDO, and commercial due diligence completed by PMSI.
For further information
For further information
Soho Square Partners
Tingting Peng
+44 203 642 2600
Notes to Editors
About Pyroguard:
Based in the UK, with locations in France, Netherlands and Spain, Pyroguard is one of the world’s leading independent producers of fire safety glass.
Supporting architects, specifiers and contractors to meet all of their fire safety glazing requirements from a single source, the company offers one of the widest product ranges available. With high-performance products tailored to customers’ precise specifications, beautiful spaces for work and leisure can be created, combining safety and aesthetics without the need for compromise.
To discover more, visit www.pyroguard.eu