Napthens advises on £600m of transactions in 12 months

By Napthens

03 Mar 2022

Website
keith-melling-3-1.jpg

Leading North West law firm Napthens has surpassed a significant milestone, advising on transactions valued at more than half a billion pounds in a single calendar year - a new record for the firm. 

Altogether, its 28-strong corporate team advised on 50 transactions with an overall value in excess of £600m. This is a significant increase on previous years, having advised on 32 transactions in 2020 and a further 28 in 2019.   

Landmark disclosable deals the firm advised on include Bosch Building Technologies’ acquisition of Lancashire fire safety firm Protec Fire and Security Group, JD Sports Fashion’s acquisition of Wheelbase Lakeland and the disposal of e-commerce platform provider EKM to ClearCourse Partnership. The firm also advised on a £15m investment into hybrid cloud and IT managed services provider Celerity from growth capital investor BGF. 

Elsewhere, the team acted on a number of Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) transactions throughout the year, including Cheshire-based global recruitment firm Zachary Daniels and maintenance company Restek.  

Led by partners Keith Melling, Richard Robinson and Robert Dobson, the firm worked with a variety of private equity-backed and owner-managed businesses, overseas corporations, venture capitalists and management teams.  

Keith Melling, partner and head of corporate at Napthens, said: “Mid-way through last year we surpassed 2020s figure and quickly realised 2021 was set to be exceptional. Appetites have been strong on both the buy and sell side, whilst private equity funds and large corporates have been seeking opportunity amidst the post-pandemic disruption, leading to a healthy volume of deals.  

“What has truly set this year apart for our team however, has been the size, nature and complexity of the deals we are now working on. We have built relationships with some of the UK’s best-known brands and continued to champion a partner-led approach on every single transaction regardless of size.” 

Richard Robinson, partner at Napthens, said: “Whilst there were many highlights in our portfolio this year, including our advising on our largest ever transaction, the overall size and calibre of deals we are working on has strengthened in the past few years and it feels we are truly hitting our stride.  

“We are now looking to build on the benchmark set in 2021 with an exciting pipeline for the year ahead, having already supported on the acquisition of North West cleanroom provider Connect 2 Cleanrooms by US-based Angstrom, amongst others.” 

Enjoyed this? Read more from Napthens

Latest news

1

PM+M welcomes ten new apprentices for 2025 intake Lucy Field, Kate Walsh, Ellie Fisher, Zainab Aswat, Reece Jones, Aisha Bibi Patel, Finley Vila, Uzair Zariwala, Richard Prest, and Charlie Harrison

PM+M welcomes ten new apprentices for 2025 intake

11 Sep 2025

2

ROCCIA strengthens commercial division with senior appointment Andrew Grove

ROCCIA strengthens commercial division with senior appointment

11 Sep 2025

3

Final call for investors: Rossendale community solar project must hit target by November Gary McEwan managing director of Interfloor

Final call for investors: Rossendale community solar project must hit target by November

10 Sep 2025

4

Lancashire Combined County Authority unveil plan to Get Lancashire Working Lancashire Combined Authority

Lancashire Combined County Authority unveil plan to Get Lancashire Working

10 Sep 2025

5

Lockheed Martin Skunk Works and BAE Systems’ FalconWorks announce strategic collaboration Collaboration between BAE Systems FalconWorks and Lockheed Martin Skunk Works

Lockheed Martin Skunk Works and BAE Systems’ FalconWorks announce strategic collaboration

09 Sep 2025

Background image for hub sign up block

LBV Hub

Leverage Lancashire Business View platforms

Post your news
Post your events
Post your offers
Build your network
Improve your SEO
Gain coverage in the magazine
Sign-up
Events
Sub36 Networking - Follow the signs
Sub36 Deaf Village Social1200
Networking
17 Sep 2025

Sub36 Networking - Follow the signs

The Deaf Village, Blackburn, BB2 5EN

10:00 - 12:00

LBV124 September/October Launch Event
MBP Arc Cinema Preston Opening 205
Networking
18 Sep 2025

LBV124 September/October Launch Event

The Arc Cinema, Preston, PR1 2BL

08:30 - 10:30

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course

Preston Campus, Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 17:00

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course

Preston Campus, Preston, PR1 2HE

08:00 - 17:00

Longridge Soap Box Derby
Screenshot 2025-06-10 090035.png.png
LBV Hub Fundraisers
14 Sep 2025 - 14 Sep 2025

Longridge Soap Box Derby

Berry Lane, Longridge, PR3 3WH

10:00 - 16:30

Preston Tech Connection - The Ultimate Tech Quiz!
Preston Tech Connection Sept 25.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
16 Sep 2025 - 16 Sep 2025

Preston Tech Connection - The Ultimate Tech Quiz!

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

18:00 - 19:00

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire
LBV Hub Networking
17 Sep 2025 - 17 Sep 2025

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire

Stanley House, Blackburn, BB2 7NP

11:30 - 14:15

Cumbria Business Expo 2025
https---cdn.evbuc.com-images-880461633-4862066883-1-original.20241022-110415.jpeg.jpg
LBV Hub Exhibitions
19 Sep 2025 - 19 Sep 2025

Cumbria Business Expo 2025

Carlisle Racecourse, Carlisle, CA2 4TS

09:00 - 15:00

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: September
Sept Freelancer (1).png.png
LBV Hub Networking
23 Sep 2025 - 23 Sep 2025

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: September

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

10:00 - 11:30

Your Business, Your Region: Making sense of devolution and Local Government Reorganisation
Chorley Council breakfast event new
LBV Hub Networking
23 Sep 2025 - 23 Sep 2025

Your Business, Your Region: Making sense of devolution and Local Government Reorganisation

Worden Hall, Leyland, PR25 3DH

08:00 - 11:00

Speed Networking with BNI
2.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
24 Sep 2025 - 24 Sep 2025

Speed Networking with BNI

Chorley Football Club, Chorley, PR7 3DU

16:00 - 19:00

The Marketing Meetup IRL: Lancashire - September
TMM Lancashire
LBV Hub Networking
25 Sep 2025 - 25 Sep 2025

The Marketing Meetup IRL: Lancashire - September

Chorley, PR7 2SL

18:00 - 20:00

Advertise with us

Reaching 50,000 members, our print, digital and event platforms offer a fantastic way to raise your business profile and help you grow.

Find out more LBV 123 Online Graphic
Subscribe now

Weekly news bulletin