BGF suits up with £8.5m ACS investment

The fresh capital will be used to expand the company's operations and support the development of its multichannel offering for its retail partners. ACS has a bespoke software business, Xedo Software, which enables its e-commerce activities. BGF will focus particularly on Xedo's "SortMyWeddingOutfit" website, which caters for bridal parties' outfit needs.

The deal saw BGF taking a minority stake in both businesses, and Scotland regional director Simon Munro will take a seat on both boards. A new chairman is in the process of being recruited.

BGF was introduced to the company by EY, through its Entrepreneur of the Year Award programme, where CEO Richard Freedman was a previous winner and Simon Munro was a judge.

According to Munro, the wedding industry is valued at $320bn each year, with the average cost of a UK wedding coming in at £18,000.

Company
ACS was founded in 1997 in Glasgow by Richard Freedman and his father Joseph, who operated a menswear shop in the city, Gilt-Edged, which remains part of the business today. The formal hire wear business originally focused on the hire of highland wear and then expanded into formal and evening wear. In April 2011, the company acquired Blackburn-based Etiquette Formal Hire.

ACS has exclusive supplier agreements with Debenhams, Austin Reed, Greenwoods, Slaters Menswear and Burton, as well as its own brand Cameron Ross.

Based in Eurocentral, just outside Glasgow, ACS employs around 100 people and generates an £11.5m turnover. The company stocks more than three million garments and processed around 400,000 UK orders in 2013.

Xedo provides software products to the hire and wedding markets, such as a retail order management system that connects ACS Clothing and Xedo users directly to its inventory, enabling electronic ordering of hire wear.

People
Richard Freedman is the CEO of ACS and Xedo. Simon Munro is BGF's regional director for Scotland and will be joining the boards of both companies.

Advisers
Equity – Deloitte (Financial due diligence); Dempster Solutions (Financial due diligence); Burness Paul (Legal).
Company – Pinsent Masons (Legal); EY (Corporate finance); Craig Corporate (Financial due diligence); Clydesdale Bank (Financial due diligence).

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• Topics
• UK / Ireland
• Expansion
• Consumer
• United Kingdom
• BGF (Business Growth Fund)