Scottish bakery and confectionery company Lees Foods is the subject of a £5.6 million management buyout, which will take the business private. Lees Foods is the parent company of Lees of Scotland and the Waverley Bakery, two Scottish companies that have a long tradition in the manufacturing of confectionery products that have been enjoyed by consumers in the UK and overseas for many years. Lees Foods has been listed on AIM since June 2005.
The management, headed by chief executive Clive Miquel and other directors, is conducted the deal through buy-out vehicle Randotte. The management of believes that the proposal to return the company to private ownership is in the best long-term interests of the business.
Lees Foods currently employs 270 people across its factories at Cambuslang and Coatbridge. Despite escalating raw materials costs, Lees Foods has managed to increase pre-tax profits from £379,000 in 2008 to just under £1 million in 2010 with 2011 profits expected to be well ahead of analysts’ forecasts of £900,000.
