EAST Kilbride-based smart label maker Worldmark has been bought by a Canadian firm in a deal that may have triggered a sizable windfall for its chief executive Bill Graham.
CCL Industries has bought Worldmark from the Equistone private equity firm for C$252m (£125m) including the debt it is taking on.
Equistone said the deal allowed the firm to make a successful exit from the investment it made in Worldmark.
Companies House records show that Mr Graham owned around five per cent of the shares in Worldmark’s parent group.
Toronto-based CCL Industries said it has long admired Worldmark, which designs and makes specialised branding and security labels used on electronic devices such as laptops and smart phones.
CCL noted Worldmark’s 2015 sales are forecast at around C$210m, entirely focused on customers in the technology sector.
The company has a head office and production facilities in East Kilbride with manufacturing plants in China, Mexico and Hungary and prototyping facilities in the US.
It has 1,900 employees around the world.
CCL Industries said it was very excited to welcome the Worldmark management team and employees to the Canadian firm.
Mr Graham said: “ I am confident CCL will provide a very good home for our business and our people, providing investment for continued growth and opportunities for career development within the much larger corporate environment CCL will provide."
Equistone has credited Mr Graham with increasing Worldmark’s growth through new customer wins and product diversification since he was appointed in 2009.
Equistone acquired a majority stake in 2007 from other private equity firms, and made further investments in 2008 and 2013.
On its website Equistone says the sale to CCL represents the latest in a series of successful exits it has made from UK investments this year.
Equistone states: “Following initial challenges, and with the business being impacted by the performance of key customers, Equistone has supported an overall strong growth from revenues of £45m in 2007 to £102m in 2015.”
The latest accounts filed by the parent company, Worldmark International Holdings Limited, show the group lost £32m before tax in 2014, on turnover of £84m. The company incurred £33.5m interest charges in the year.
Worldmark was created in 1999 through a £65m management buy-out from Jarvis Porter, led by then chief executive John Dargan.
Mr Dargan’s LinkedIn profile states he left Worldmark in July 2009 and became a US-based vice president of the Jabil electronics manufacturing business in that year. Companies House records show he retained a small shareholding in Worldmark International Holdings.
Barclays Private Equity acquired a majority stake in Worldmark in 2007. Equistone developed out of the private equity firm.
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