THE DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN
Our Client – The Vendor
Crown Project Services (“CPS”) provides independent project management services to Australia’s property & infrastructure sectors. The Business has a team of approximately 25 staff and specialises in managing building & construction projects that take place in active environments. Highly effective in handling these complex jobs involving large numbers of stakeholders, CPS had built an impressive track record of major project completions across Australia’s eastern seaboard. CPS predominantly focuses on the health & aged care, commercial, education, and public institutions markets and to a lesser extent large-scale residential. Its customer-base comprises large private companies and institutions as well as state and local government departments & agencies, with revenues split evenly between the private and public sectors.
After almost 15 years of building the Business and more than 30 years in the industry, the Owners wanted to setup a succession strategy and ensure continued future growth for CPS in a dynamic business environment. They sought a strategic acquirer to take the Business to the next level and were happy to provide a medium-term handover period to ensure business continuity. The Managing Director appointed Johnsons Corporate as specialists in marketing mid-sized businesses to international acquirers, mandating us to identify and approach several industry players and assist with sales and negotiations processes.
The International Sales Strategy
CPS represented an attractive opportunity for a strategic acquirer to leverage the company’s established client relationships, its broad eastern seaboard presence, and experienced project team members. Additionally, the Business provided an acquirer with strong repeat business from a cross-section of both private and public clients.
CPS was confident the acquirer would be a party they were familiar with and provided Johnsons with a list of 15 companies to approach. This was complemented by additional desktop research to incorporate additional prospective buyers from the Project Management sector as well as Commercial Real Estate, Engineering Services and Tier-1 Professional Service firms. The final target list incorporated companies from Australia, Canada, Germany, UK, Ireland, Lebanon, Singapore and Hong Kong. Johnsons ran a proactive direct marketing campaign that uncovered +15 qualified, interested parties. Further vetting and negotiations resulted in the selection of a preferred buyer from Hong Kong as well as a backup buyer, with Johnsons playing a critical role in bringing this cross-border deal to a successful completion.
(Read more about how using a Specialised Mid-Market Business broker approach to selling your business could get you a better outcome – just like our client).
The Overseas Trade Buyer
Currie & Brown is a global asset management and construction consultancy with operations across Europe, Middle East, USA, Mexico, India and the Asia Pacific Region. The Business sought to expand its footprint in the Australian market by acquiring a head office in Sydney to complement its presence in Melbourne and Brisbane.
What Our Client Had to Say
"I met with a Director from Johnsons Corporate... He seemed to talk my language and understood a people-based professional services business. My overall impression was that they had significant experience in selling mid-sized private businesses, and this was certainly demonstrated during the sale process. Along the way there were various challenges throughout the due diligence and legal processes. However, the team at Johnsons were always available with practical advice and assistance in driving outcomes. In the end we closed [the deal]... both my wife and I were thrilled with the outcome."
David Hughes, Director - Crown Project Services