Cairngorm secures majority stake in Thornbridge Sawmills

The company was previously owned by its directors.

The deal is the first for Cairngorm Capital II, which closed in April 2017 on its hard-cap of £107.5m. It is Cairngorm's second major investment in Scotland, following its acquisition of trade supplier Stevenswood Group in November 2016.

Jim Faulds, who has served on the boards of more than a dozen firms backed by private equity firms, and John Declerck, chief executive of Stevenswood, will join Thornbridge's board as chair and non-executive director, respectively. Debt for the transaction was provided by PNC Business Credit and Clydesdale Bank.

Company
Thornbridge is an importer and processor of timber and sheet materials, with a combined sawmill and distribution hub in Grangemouth, as well as eight branches across Scotland. It was founded in 1992 and has 159 staff. In 2016, the company generated an EBIT of £1.7m from revenues of £34m.

People
Cairngorm Capital – Neil McGill (investment director).
Thornbridge Sawmills – Bruce Muirhead (managing director).

Advisers
Vendor – BDO (corporate finance); Addleshaw Goddard (legal).
Equity – Grant Thornton (corporate finance); Wright Johnston & Mackenzie (legal); CIL (commercial due diligence).

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