River Capital has announced a £500,000 investment in Liverpool-based M&E engineering consultancy, Steven A Hunt & Associates Ltd.
The funding was structured to facilitate a management buyout (MBO) by the senior management team of Neil Baines, Anne King, Dave Kelly and Dominic Sibbring from founder Steven Hunt, who will remain in the business in a consultancy capacity and to provide continued support.
Steven A Hunt & Associates has been providing high-quality professional M&E engineering services to clients, project leaders, architects and consultant partners since its founding in 1989.
With a diverse client base across the healthcare, education, and commercial sectors, the business has built a reputation for excellence, innovation and sustainability and in the financial year ending July 2024, the company achieved revenues of more than seven figures.
The funding package included debt and vendor deferment, with the debt funding coming from the River Capital managed North West Business Growth Loan fund, the investment will allow the four-member management team led by Managing Director Neil Baines to acquire the 79% shareholding of founder Steven Hunt following a 21% shareholding purchase in 2023.
Jim Moore, Investment Manager at River Capital, commented: “We are delighted to support the highly experienced management team at Steven A Hunt & Associates in this MBO. The company has a demonstrated a consistent track record of profitability and is well-positioned for future growth. With the new leadership team’s complementary skills and deep client relationships, we are confident they will build successfully on the company’s 30-year heritage.”
Neil Baines, Managing Director at Steven A Hunt & Associates, added: “River Capital’s investment enables us to complete a carefully planned succession and provides the financial foundation for the next chapter in our company’s journey. With an increasing focus on sustainability across our key sectors of healthcare and education, we see tremendous opportunities ahead to design high-performing buildings that enhance wellbeing while minimising environmental impact. We look forward to working with the supportive team at River Capital.”
The transaction brought together a team of local advisors with DSG Corporate Advisory and Morecrofts acting on behalf of the vendor while Langtons Corporate Advisory and Primas Law acted on behalf of the new management team.