Press Release

Deal announcement - AlixPartners advises private equity firm Endless on successful sale of Adare International to HH Global

August 20, 2021

LONDON (August 20, 2021)AlixPartners, the global consulting firm, has advised private equity firm, Endless LLP (‘Endless’) on the successful sale of Adare International, a marketing services provider with strong procurement, creative, and data offerings and a presence in more than 50 countries, to global marketing execution company, HH Global Ltd. (‘HH Global’). 

The combined global business will consist of more than 4,000 employees, generating approximately $2.1bn in annual sales. The transaction enhances the international footprint and scope of HH Global, while further strengthening its procurement offering and its content and interactive service lines. 

Endless acquired Adare International in 2015 as part of the Adare Group. Adare International has since grown significantly through investment in organic growth and bolt-on acquisitions. The company has 650 employees worldwide and reported revenue of £234 million in the year ended 31 December 2019.

The AlixPartners team, led by M&A partner Nick Wood, provided full lead advisory services, supporting Endless and the management team to prepare the business for sale, engage with potential buyers, price negotiations, manage the due diligence process and drive the overall deal timetable.

Commenting on the transaction, Nick Wood said: 

“The acquisition of Adare was a key step in HH’s strategy to become a global, market leader in the print management and marketing execution sector. The deal is also a great example of the increasing trend of corporates returning to growth strategies and M&A post-pandemic.”

Aidan Robson, a founder and partner at Endless, said:

“AlixPartners have worked alongside ourselves and Management for a significant period of time, developing a deep understanding of the Adare business. This enabled them to identify key selling points to drive value, give hands on support and robustly negotiate complex commercial matters that arose during the sales process. Having a strong intermediary is crucial in transactions of this nature. I would like specifically thank Nick Wood and the wider AlixPartners team for helping us to deliver a successful exit for Endless Fund III.”

Andrew Dutton, CEO of Adare International, commented:

“AlixPartners did exactly what they said they would do: they partnered with the Adare team, providing technical and sales process support and took on the heavy workload required to prepare the business for sale. This allowed us to simultaneously engage with the sale process whilst also allowing us to run the business and deliver for our clients. The AlixPartners team acted as a key broker/intermediary with the buyer helping to facilitate relationships, robustly support commercial negotiations and ultimately secure items of value for our shareholders. The AlixPartners team were great people to work with and showed an absolute commitment to getting the job done. Thank you.”

ABOUT ALIXPARTNERS

AlixPartners is a results-driven global consulting firm that specializes in helping businesses successfully address their most complex and critical challenges. Our clients include companies, corporate boards, law firms, investment banks, private equity firms and others. Founded in 1981, AlixPartners is headquartered in New York, and has offices in 25 cities around the world. For more information, visit www.alixpartners.com.

The AlixPartners M&A services team consists of dedicated specialists providing corporate finance and debt advisory services, specialist valuations, merger and competition advice, operational diligence, post-merger integration, enterprise improvement, restructuring and corporate turnarounds. By combining an excellent track record of success with deep industry knowledge, the team delivers superior results to a wide range of corporate, private equity, institutional, and entrepreneurial clients.

This deal was led by:

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

Pippa Miller-Jennings

Senior Vice President, London