Aurelius acquires Ideal Shopping Direct from Blackstone

Kenny Wastell
25 July 2018

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Aurelius Equity Opportunities has acquired UK multi-channel retailer Ideal Shopping Direct (ISD) from Blackstone.

The transaction brings to an end a three-year holding for the vendor, which was invested in ISD via its 2009-vintage $8bn vehicle Blackstone Capital Partners VI.

The transaction was valued at significantly less than the amount Blackstone originally paid for the company, and considerably less than the £100m figure quoted in some press reports, Unquote understands.

ISD generated a turnover of £142.3m in 2016, according to publicly available documents, down from £149m at the time of Blackstone's initial investment. It also generated underlying EBITDA of £12.2m, down from £18.8m the previous year. However, according to a statement, the company's turnover increased to £145m in 2017.

Under its new owners, the business will undertake a marketing drive within the UK and look to make operational improvements.

Previous funding
Inflexion acquired ISD in April 2011 in a take-private deal valuing the business at £78.3m. Blackstone then acquired the company in 2015 in a deal that was understood to have valued the business at below £200m and around 16x its EBITDA.

Company
Headquartered in Peterborough and founded in 1980, ISD is a craft and hobbyist retailer operating across online and broadcast platforms. The business has a headcount of 800 and has television channels on the Virgin Media, Sky, Freesat and Freeview channels in the UK. It operates primarily under the Create & Craft and Ideal World brands.

People
Aurelius – Tristan Nagler (UK managing director).
Ideal Shopping Direct – Bill Adams (CEO).

Advisers
Vendor – Deloitte (corporate finance).