Acquisition of Law At Work (Holdings) Limited

03 December 2019

Marlowe plc

Acquisition of Law At Work (Holdings) Limited

Marlowe plc ("Marlowe" or the "Group"), the specialist services group focused on developing companies which assure regulatory compliance and safety, announces that it has acquired Law At Work (Holdings) Limited, trading as Law At Work ("LAW"), for an initial consideration of £6.3 million.

Established in 2001 and headquartered in Glasgow, LAW is a leading national provider of subscription-based employment law compliance and health and safety services. LAW employs approximately 70 staff, more than half of whom are employment lawyers, HR compliance professionals and health and safety consultants, whose advice and consultancy ensures that commercial organisations remain compliant with employment law and health and safety legislation. The acquisition is a further step in Marlowe's strategy of building an end-to-end provider of regulated compliance services and offers synergies with the Group's existing Health, Safety and Compliance businesses, in particular with William Martin.  

For the year to 31 May 2019, LAW generated revenues of £5.4 million, EBITDA of £1.2 million and profit before tax of £1.0 million. At 31 October 2019, LAW had net assets of £2.2 million. The total enterprise value will comprise an initial cash consideration of £6.3 million and a contingent consideration which is expected to be approximately £4.0 million over three years dependent on the achievement of profit targets. The acquisition will be funded from the Group's existing cash and debt facilities.

Alex Dacre, Chief Executive of Marlowe plc, said:

"By acquiring Law at Work, a business which helps clients to mitigate their employee-related risk and assure their health & safety performance, we are both strengthening Marlowe's leading health and safety operation and significantly advancing our capabilities to work with clients across the full spectrum of their compliance needs. The business, which delivers subscription-based consultancy services, operates nationally in an attractive and underserved market in which we see significant growth opportunities. The acquisition is a major step in strengthening our position as the UK leader in regulated compliance services to organisations of all sizes."  

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About Marlowe plc

Marlowe is a UK leader in specialist services which assure the safety and regulatory compliance of commercial properties, whilst managing risk for businesses across the country. The company was formed to create sustainable shareholder value through the acquisition and development of businesses that provide regulated inspection, testing and compliance services. It is focused on health & safety, fire safety, security, water safety, water treatment, air quality and environmental services - all of which are vital to the wellbeing of its customers operations and are invariably governed by regulation. Marlowe currently provides services to over 15% of Britain's commercial premises and is increasingly attractive to customers who require a single outsourced, nationwide, provider of a comprehensive range of regulated compliance and safety services. Our customers can be found in most office complexes, high streets & leisure facilities, manufacturing plants and industrial estates, and include SMEs, local authorities, facilities management providers, multi-site NHS trusts and FTSE 100 companies.