Industrial
Selling a business


Lead Advisor to the shareholders of Carrs Tool Steels Technologies on the sale of the business.

About the deal

Carrs, which can trace its history back to 1902, is a leading UK supplier of advanced technology tool steel and aluminium, providing a comprehensive range of materials and value added cutting and machining services to manufacturing businesses across the country. The business has experienced strong growth in recent years following the resurgence of the manufacturing sector in the UK and investment in new processing facilities.

The business, which was originally acquired by the shareholders via a management buy-out in 1992, has been sold to the company’s management team led by Andrew Eastwood and Julie Shields. Bill Church, the outgoing Chairman of Carrs, commented “we are delighted to have completed the sale of the business to Andrew and Julie. This represents a natural conclusion to a succession plan we instituted in 2009. The business under their stewardship has continued to go from strength to strength and we are delighted to have handed over the reins to them”.

Springboard acted as lead advisor to the shareholders of Carrs, managing the sales process and negotiating a deal with the management team.

How we made a difference

  • Constructed sales process to ensure trade and management buy-out routes were explored
  • Delivered the sale of the business to its management team on optimal terms for the vendors.
  • Facilitated the smooth raising of debt facilities by the acquirer
What our clients say

Bill Church - Outgoing Chairman and Shareholder, Carrs Tool Steels Technologies

Springboard initially gave us a clear explanation of the sale process and then managed this through the various stages while keeping the shareholders fully briefed at all times.  This enabled the management team to concentrate on running the business. We are delighted with the result.