Economy booming in Northamptonshire say firm after securing multi-million pound growth deals for firms

Northamptonshire's economy is 'vibrant and thriving' despite fears over economic gloom following the Brexit vote, financial advisers have claimed.
Mark Hoogenboom shows off some of his delicious Dunkleys pies at a festival earlier this yearMark Hoogenboom shows off some of his delicious Dunkleys pies at a festival earlier this year
Mark Hoogenboom shows off some of his delicious Dunkleys pies at a festival earlier this year

Grant Thornton says its advisory team has secured four major deals for firms in the county to expand and grow.

The team negotiated a £13 million investment from Praesidian Capital to support the merger of Prestige Park & Leisure Homes Limited and Homeseeker Park & Leisure Homes, two of the UK’s biggest names in the leisure lodge and park residential manufacturing industry.

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Grant Thornton also worked with Ocee, a leading Northampton manufacturer of commercial furniture, to secure a £10 million investment from the Business Growth Fund to support its acquisition of Danish furniture manufacturer Four Design.

This transaction was followed by the sale of Bakeaway, the Corby-based manufacturer of chilled home baking products, to French company Osaris. The move enables Bakeaway to invest and expand its product range.

Most recently, Grant Thornton also supported Dunkleys, the Wellingborough-based producer of pies and desserts for the food services sector, on its acquisition by The Billington Group.

Mike Hughes, from Grant Thornton’s Northampton office, said: “The Northamptonshire economy is positively alive and vibrant and despite broader concerns about the UK economy following the Leave vote, the outlook here in the county is highly optimistic.

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“Over the past few months, we have completed a string of significant deals across Northamptonshire as businesses look to expand through acquisition or secure investment to support future growth. These transactions underline the positive findings from our recent Northamptonshire Limited report which found that our county’s businesses are continuing to prosper.”

With a number of other significant deals in the pipeline, Grant Thornton expects this positive picture to continue into 2017.

Mike added: “Nobody can predict what will happen over the next few months as Britain starts planning its exit from the EU, but businesses with an ambition to grow have every reason to be optimistic. Companies need to hold their nerve, stick to good principles and make decisions based on an awareness of market issues without being paralysed by them.”