Waterfall Services

Catering services for the education and welfare sectors

Waterfall Services

Sector

Business services

Location

Warrington

Deal type

Management Buyout

Investment size

£1.3m - 5.3x return

Investment date(s)

2007 - 2014

"It has been a whirlwind few years and we have now established ourselves as one of the leading players in our sector. YFM were very supportive and they have helped transform the growth of our business, including two acquisitions and helped as we realised their investment transitioning to new owners."

Jim Lovett, CEO of Waterfall Services

The business

  • A leading specialist contract caterer in the education and care and welfare sectors
  • A highly experienced management team looking to buy the business with a group of institutional investors
  • Owns and operated two strong catering brands, Caterplus and Taylor Shaw

The strategy

  • Expand the business rapidly by looking for organic growth opportunities
  • Look for strategic acquisitions to complement the organic growth story
  • Become a leading independent contract cater in the UK by focusing on certain specialist sectors

The developments

  • Successfully acquired and integrated two catering companies to consolidate the group’s niche market position extending its geographical reach
  • Grew revenues by 5x to £60m and staff numbers from 400 to 3,000+
  • Sold in 2014 in a secondary buyout backed by private equity for a 5.3x return
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