Sale Sharks co-owner Simon Orange has completed the sale of his CorpAcq empire to private equity firm TDR Capital in a deal believed to exceed £1bn.
The Cheshire-based portfolio company, which includes brands such as Cotton Traders, however does not encompass Sale Sharks within this transaction, as reported by .
Established by Simon Orange in 2006, CorpAcq is renowned for its buy and build approach, often targeting smaller, ambitious companies.
Commenting on the new partnership, Simon Orange remarked, "We have found an investment partner in TDR that aligns with CorpAcq’s value creation strategy, shares our long-term view, and is fully supportive of the business as we embark on our next phase of growth."
TDR Capital's managing partner, Tom Mitchell, expressed admiration for CorpAcq's success, saying, "In CorpAcq, we identified a highly successful compounder of º£½ÇÊÓƵ SMEs that has significant further growth potential."
He further stated, "With our investment, CorpAcq can continue to provide its owner-friendly business combination strategy, and we look forward to working with Simon and the rest of the CorpAcq team to realise this."
The deal awaits closure in the upcoming months, pending necessary regulatory consents.
Barclays and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP served as advisors to TDR. CorpAcq shareholders received advice from UBS and Reed Smith LLP.
The agreement comes nearly 18 months after CorpAcq unveiled a £1.6bn plan to merge with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) established by Michael Klein.
However, the move, which would have taken CorpAqc public in New York, was officially abandoned in August last year due to a series of delays.
At that time, Klein’s vehicle Churchill Capital VII blamed challenging IPO market conditions for the decision. If the deal had been successful, CorpAcq was projected to receive $592m in additional funding.
Among CorpAcq’s supporters were Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Nova Capital, who invested in the business in 2022. In addition to holding a majority stake in supermarket giant Asda, TDR Capital also has bus giant Stonegate and David Lloyd Leisure in its portfolio.
Accounts filed with Companies House at the end of last year showed that partners at TDR Capital shared £44m between them in the year to 31 March, 2024.
TDR Capital first became involved in Asda when it partnered with the Issa brothers in 2021 to purchase the chain for £6.8bn.
The firm has been active in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ since being founded in London in 2002 by Manjit Dale, Stephen Robertson and Tudor Capital. TDR Capital and CorpAcq have been approached for comment.
