Napthens advises on reverse takeover

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Corporate solicitors at regional law firm Napthens have advised on a major deal which saw the reverse takeover of The Barkby Group Plc which is listed on the AIM stock exchange.

Well-known entrepreneur Charles Dickson together with his family have sold three of their companies, Tarncourt Ambit Properties Ltd, Tarncourt Ambit Ltd and Workshop Trading Holdings Ltd, to The Barkby Group plc. 

A team at Napthens solicitors led by Corporate partner Rob Dobson advised the Dickson family on the takeover, a deal reported to be worth more than £30million. 

As part of the deal, Charles and his family became majority shareholders in Barkby Group when it listed on AIM (Alternative Investment Market), part of the London Stock Exchange designed to help smaller companies access capital from the public market. This process is known as a reverse takeover.

Rob said: “This was a major deal for all parties, and highly complex due to the nature of the reverse takeover and subsequent listing on the Alternative Investment Market.

“Charles and his family are long-standing clients of Napthens, and we have helped to support the growth of the businesses for many years. 

“This deal was one of the few stock market listings to have been carried out over the last quarter of 2019, and is a great indication that quality legal advice can be found in Lancashire and outside of cities like London and Manchester.”

The Tarncourt businesses specialise in property development in the South East of England, while Workshop Trading owns a roastery and a number of speciality coffee shops in London.

The Barkby Group plc operates in a range of sectors including real estate, hospitality, automotive and life sciences.

Late last year Napthens won the Mid-size Law Firm of the Year category at the North West Insider Dealmakers Awards. 

In a statement to the stock market, Charles Dickson, executive chair of Barkby Group, said: “This is a transformational acquisition for all of us.

"The group now consists of a diverse portfolio of high growth, high quality businesses and several very exciting early stage businesses with the potential to significantly disrupt the markets within which they operate.”

He added: “Napthens was instrumental in ensuring the takeover went as planned, and we’d like to thank the team for its hard work in helping to secure this next stage in the business.”