One of Wales’ leading recruitment firms, Hoop Recruitment, has been acquired by its employees. Established in 2016, the £20m turnover business with offices in Cardiff and Swansea, employs around 40 staff.
It specialises in recruiting for the nursing, social care, social work, education, HR and professional services sectors.
The deal, the value of which has not been disclosed, provides an ownership exit for founders Paul Lewis and Hywel Roberts, However, Mr Lewis remains as chief executive and Mr Roberts as chief operating officer. They also form part of new look board of directors that also includes Rhian Smith, Hoop’s director of nursing, Sarah Leigh, head of social work, Luisa Gale, HR manager, and Blair Driscoll, director of education at the company.
The former owners believe the new employee ownership trust (EOT) model is critical for the future success of the business. Businesses sold to EOTs benefit from capital gains tax exemption.
Since founding the business Mr Lewis said: We’ve grown steadily, and this year we reached a significant milestone by transitioning to an EOT. This change has given our team a real stake in the future of Hoop and aligning with our commitment to building a business based on trust, collaboration, and long-term thinking.
“As a CEO, you want your business to grow and thrive in line with our values and beliefs and we feel that Hoop can and will do this even more under the ownership of our employees. Now, being employee owned we can give even more back to our team, effectively creating a company full of business owners, our workforce is more determined and focused than ever to deliver on our vision, mission and purpose.
“We are now massive advocates for EOTs and using this business model we hope to expand and make Hoop one of the largest independently owned business in Wales and create a business that we are even more proud of, a business that gives back as much as it can to its clients and staff alike.”
Acuity provided legal advice to Hoop Recruitment on its EOT transition, with BPU advising on its valuation. The business was also supported by Social Business Wales, delivered by Cwmpas.
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Branwen Ellis, specialist employee ownership consultant for Cwmpas, said: “It’s been a pleasure to work with Paul and Hywel and it was clear from the outset that the employee-ownership model would work well for them and the business, as it was clearly aligned with the organisational culture. I think they both considered the EOT model, not only to be a good succession planning option but also a way to further enhance their organisational culture, to empower their workforce and give something back.
“I look forward to seeing Hoop go from strength to strength under its new ownership and wish them all the best for the future.”