Husband and wife team buy removal firm

A husband and wife management team are now the sole owners of a house moving business in Teesside after buying the shares in the company that they did not already own.


A husband and wife management team are now the sole owners of a house moving business in Teesside after buying the shares in the company that they did not already own.

A husband and wife management team are now the sole owners of a house moving business in Teesside after buying the shares in the company that they did not already own.

Middlesbrough-based Pearson Home Moving’s managing director Frances Reed and her husband Stephen have bought the remaining 67% of the company for an undisclosed sum.

The duo, who have 40 combined years at the business, now hold a 100% shareholding in the company after securing the backing of Yorkshire Bank’s Tees Valley Financial Solutions Centre.

This funding enabled the Reeds’ to buy the remaining shares from the final two family members of the business, directors David and Brian Pearson. The vendors are the grandsons of the founder and they have retired following the sale.

The bank has supported the company for three decades and last year provided funding to the Reeds so they could buy an initial 33% stake in the business and become directors of the family business as part of a succession strategy.

In assembling the funding, Yorkshire Bank Tees Valley FSC business partner, David Jeffrey, involved some of the bank’s risk management and invoice finance specialists to structure a bespoke packaging combining a traditional loan with raising funds through invoice finance and interest hedging.

“Our approach is to listen to what customers want and then use our expertise to enable them to achieve it in the best possible way,” Jeffrey said. “We are delighted to have completed this two-stage deal for Frances and Stephen Reed and wish them all the very best.

“The Yorkshire Bank funding is also allowing Frances and Stephen Reed to extend services at the company including executive relocation and specialist IT removals,” he added.

Pearson Home Moving, formerly E Pearson & Sons (Teesside) Ltd, has a £4 million turnover with 85 staff operating through 35 removal vans and same number of trailers.

The company, which was established in 1917, is part of the UniGroup Worldwide UTS, a network of top removal companies with more than 100 bases throughout Europe.

Marc Barber

Marc Barber

Marc was editor of GrowthBusiness from 2006 to 2010. He specialised in writing about entrepreneurs, private equity and venture capital, mid-market M&A, small caps and high-growth businesses.

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