Gloucestershire manufacturer acquired in management buy-out

By Nicky Godding

9 May 2024

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Umesh Ghai, Eric Mertz and Tim Ferkin

A manufacturer of window and door hardware is under new ownership following the completion of a management buyout (MBO).

Cotswold Architectural Products Ltd (CAP), based in Cheltenham and also has an office in Mumbai, has been acquired in a deal by three senior figures in the management team.

CAP, founded in 1973, manufactures and sells door and window hardware to manufacturers and distributors in the UK and overseas.

It produced the first friction stay window hinge in Europe and with an extensive product array is a world-leader in its field. The business has operations in the UK and subsidiaries in South East Asia, with distribution partners around the globe.

CAP was previously owned by Caldwell Manufacturing Company before that company was acquired by Assa Abloy in 2022.

Tim Ferkin, managing director of CAP, Eric Mertz, former CEO of Caldwell Manufacturing Company, and Umesh Ghai, CAP general manager in India, have joined forces to acquire the business.

Tim said: “We’re pleased to have been able to complete the management buyout, which will enable an acceleration of the group’s growth and investment plans.

“We have already established a manufacturing subsidiary in India to increase our production capacity and, with the deal completed, we can now press on with the next stage of our growth strategy.

“Burgis & Bullock Corporate Finance and Lodders Solicitors provided advice and support in completing this deal, navigating us through the entire transaction and providing sound commercial advice throughout.

“With sellers in the USA and operations in the UK and India there were many complications and hurdles to overcome, but we are delighted to have completed the deal and look forward to a bright future for Cotswold Architectural Products.”

Simon Chapman and Phil Stevens from accountancy firm Burgis & Bullock’s corporate finance team advised the management team on the acquisition.

Burgis & Bullock has offices in Leamington, Nuneaton, Stratford-upon-Avon and Rugby.

Simon Chapman, corporate finance partner at Burgis & Bullock, said: “We are delighted to have supported the management team in this acquisition, working with the sellers in the US and two subsidiaries in India to facilitate the cross-border deal.

“Tim, Eric and Umesh have ambitious plans for the business and we look forward to following their success.”

“This is the latest in a string of international merger and acquisition deals on which Burgis & Bullock has advised, following recent support on the sales of Xchanger Services Limited to Vestas Aircoil in Denmark and the sale of CORE Information Management Systems to Mental Health Informatics in Norway.”

Graham Spalding and Lydia Lasseter of Lodders LLP were the legal advisers to the management team.

Graham Spalding, corporate partner at Lodders said: “We enjoyed very much working with Simon and the Burgis & Bullock team again, helping Eric, Tim and Umesh on this acquisition,

“We look forward to seeing them develop the business further under their ownership in the coming years.

“Our corporate team remains very active in our target market acting for owner managers on deals in the £2m to 20m deal size space.”

Deborah Melluish, of Eaton Smith, advised the sellers on the sale.

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.