All-Energy is the UK’s leading renewable energy exhibition that is held annually at AECC in Aberdeen. The energy sector is strategic for several organisers in the UK so we had a number of attractive offers for the business. We completed the transaction in a very tight timetable after the May 2011 event.
EnergyNet is the market-leading conference in Europe about Power in Africa. The event has a very strong reputation in this fast growing event. The vendors were looking to sell 100% but wanted to stay involved for a transition period to ensure its ongoing success. We attracted a number of offers and Clarion were chosen as the successful bidder partly because of the structure of their deal and partly because their experience and management was the best fit for the business going forward.
IFO is one of the best independent exhibition organisers in Turkey. Tarsus acquired 75% and will use the business as a base for their expansion in Turkey including launches and further acquisitions.
Red Publishing and Events run Cloud Expo Europe, a small early cycle event with huge growth potential. The challenge was to structure a deal that gave our client true value while de-risking it for the venture capital backed purchaser.
Roadexpo was owned by Faversham House and runs in Scotland and Ireland. It had become a non-core product for them.
Cruise Show is an event that brings the cruise operators in direct contact with the public. We sourced partners for the event with Britta von Wedel in Germany (where we negotiated and structured a joint venture) and with Single Market Events in Australia (where we negotiated and structured a License Agreement).
Sial is the powerful French food exhibition brand which has been successfully exported to South America, China and Canada. We represented Turret Middle East in creating a joint venture with Comexposium for the successful launch of Sial Abu Dhabi.
Following the sales and marketing partnership signed in 2009, UBM Asia acquired 65% of these market leading jewellery exhibitions in Turkey. We structured a series of options for the remaining 35% which will allow the original owner to finally exit at a time of their choosing over the next 10 years.
When Clarion acquired Survey Germany, organiser of the ZOW exhibition, they also took an option to acquire their Turkish business which had a number of financially unsustainable contracts. We used our deep relations in the Turkish market to renegotiate some of the key contracts so that the cost base of the business made financial sense.
E-Commerce Expo is a successful niche event launched by IMP Events Ltd. We’d worked for them before in 2005 when we sold Business Continuity Expo to Reed Exhibitions. The market for online trading shows in the UK is quite fragmented and there were a number of parties who were keen to acquire E-Commerce Expo to increase their impact in the sector. It was an excellent fit for UBM Live who also run Internet World – the deal involves an earn-out with the management of IMP continuing to have full control of the event until after the 2010 show. They are predicting strong growth so this will maximise the price for the vendors.
DMG wanted to sell their entire business in New Zealand and the preference was for one purchaser – a difficult task as the portfolio had three distinct sectors, some well-established gift shows, some trade shows which were mostly non-annual events and some consumer events. We ran parallel processes, looking for a purchaser for the each sector of the business and for the whole business. We had a lot of interest although the majority of offers were only for one of the three sectors but we succeeded in consolidating these into two transactions – one for the B2B shows and one for the B2C shows.
DMG had a strong portfolio of trade events in Australia and the main interest in acquiring them came from large international organisers looking to consolidate their position in the market. We had four offers for the entire portfolio plus a number of offers for single shows and were therefore able to have a strong second round bidding process. Diversified were ultimately successful as they had the most synergistic portfolio which gave them the most confidence in the future performance of the events
Ipekyolu owns Beauty Eurasia, the leading trade event in Turkey for the professional beauty industry. The show has a very strong reputation for attracting an international audience. The vendors wanted to form a partnership with an international organiser who has experience in the beauty industry and could deliver strong international growth. Bolognafiere, as organisers of Cosmoprof were the first choice. The companies have set up a sales and marketing partnership to jointly run the show with the aim of Bolognafiere taking equity in Ipekyolu in the future.
Rotaforte organises the main jewellery exhibitions in Turkey which are amongst Turkey’s most prestigious events. Rotaforte wanted a partner who could add value through their own experience in the jewellery industry. UBM Asia are already the market leaders in the jewellery sector in Asia and the relationship with Rotaforte was a good strategic move. There is an agreement which gives UBM Asia the opportunity to acquire an increasing stake in Rotaforte in the future.
DMG decided to sell the Ideal Home Show as part of its restructuring in order to focus on trade events. The Ideal Home Show is the UK’s oldest and best known exhibition and, although the event has declined in the past few years it still has a good reputation and very strong brand appeal. We attracted a number of potential purchasers and were able to complete a deal with Media 10 very quickly as they were the most logical purchaser due to their experience running Grand Designs.
There were three shows in this portfolio – the Ski Show, the Vitality Show and the Outdoor Show. They were being sold at the height of the recession and sponsorship revenue was lower than in previous years. Despite this the 2009 editions of the shows attracted good audience numbers and it was on the back of this that we were able to attract multiple bids and a very attractive price for the business.
Winner of the Best Exhibition Launch category at the AEO Awards in 2009.
Counter Terror Expo was an unusual project because we began the sale process before the first edition of the event had even taken place. The vendor was looking for some financial security to enable him to focus on developing the show. We therefore structured a deal based on an earn-out delivering the vendors some cash on completion, with further payments based on future growth. The unprecedented success of the show – the launch edition sold out eight months before the event – attracted a lot of interest and we were able to choose a partner that offered the best long-term deal for the vendor.
The owners of Learning Technologies were looking for a deal that enabled them to retain some equity and continue to develop the show independently. They were adamant that they didn’t want to be taken over by a big-corporation and to lose their independence. Closer Still Media (CSM) have proved to be the perfect partner – they offer them expertise, help and advice where required, but let them run the show independently. The partnership has been very successful – the show has grown by 20% and they have launched a new event. As a venture capital backed business, the intention is for CSM to be sold in 3 – 5 years and the LT team will relinquish their remaining equity at that stage, sharing in the upside created by the overall buy and build strategy adopted by their new owners.
All Energy is the leading alternative energy show in the UK. It was jointly owned by Media Generation and the Aberdeen City Council. There were a lot of major organisers who were keen to acquire the event as the sector has delivered such high growth. QMDI were interested in the event as they were looking to replicate it into other markets – they wanted the vendors to retain a stake and to continue to be involved in the running of the show.
Winner of the Best Exhibition Launch category at the AEO Awards in 2008.
WFES (Abu Dhabi) was launched in Abu Dhabi by Turret Middle East and won the Best Exhibition launch category at the AEO Awards in 2008. Turret decided to sell the event following the first edition and because of both the subject matter and the territory there was very strong interest. We negotiated the sale of 100% of the event which included an earnout on the second edition and the right for Turret to launch other editions in certain other territories.
Ekin run EMITT, the market leading Travel and Tourism Exhibition in Turkey and also publish the Hotel Guide. The owners wanted to realise some capital by selling a stake in the business, but the buyer needed to be able to add value through their international network. ITE were a logical buyer because of both their strength in the sector and their already existing operations in Turkey. ITE acquired a majority stake whilst the EKIN management continue to run the business.
Employment Week had been acquired by Tarsus plc five years ago. The event no longer fitted into Tarsus’s portfolio and although it was profitable it was requiring considerable management time. They were looking to sell it to a specialist organiser for whom it would be a better fit. Summit Events were one of three bidders and bought the show.
UK-based Dew Events had launched the European Snack and Sandwich Show seven years ago. The event had grown by 15-20% every year since launch and, as a growing niche sector within the food sector, was an attractive proposition to a number of purchasers. We had a very strong second round of bidding and Reed acquired the event shortly after the 2008 edition.