Multi-million deal to buy Wolverhampton's Angel Springs

Angel Springs is a £20 million a year company that has grown to employ 200 people, around 80 of them at its headquarters in Bushbury.

Supplying 60,000 water coolers across the UK, it has increased its workforce by 40 per cent over the last two years.

It has also taken over a number of smaller rivals after it was backed by a major investment from LDC, the private equity arm of Lloyds Bank.

Now LDC has sold its stake in Angel Springs to German-based private equity firm Castik Capital – and made a tidy profit on the deal. Although the price tag is not being revealed, LDC has confirmed that it has tripled its original investment in just over three years.

LDC backed Angel's managing director, John Dundon, in driving growth at the business alongside the takeover of other firms. It now has 10 regional service and distribution sites nationwide. It also supported the firm's move from its base in Ettingshall to a state-of-the-art new 10,000 sq ft home in Bushbury in 2012.

And the new owners have equally ambitious plans for Angel.

Michael Phillips, a partner of Castik Capital, said: "The acquisition of Angel Springs is a material building block in our strategy to form a globally leading water cooler company. Angel Springs has exhibited impressive growth over recent years – both organically and through acquisitions – and has a highly experienced management team, headed by CEO John Dundon."

The deal follows Castik's recent £122.6 million acquisition of Waterlogic, a global distributor of drinking water purification and dispensing systems.

Castik's takeover of Angel Springs was assisted by financial advisers Altium. Phil Adams, chief executive of Altium, said: "Angel Springs is one of the UK's leading water cooler companies, and with Castik's backing and long-term mindset, will go from strength to strength in the next few years. It has been exciting to be a part of the process and we look forward to partnering with the team in the future."

How the two water firms will work together has not been revealed. An Altium spokesman added: "The intention for the businesses has not been decided as yet, but the expectation is that the staff count at Angel Springs' head office in Wolverhampton will remain as is."

Angel's John Dundon said: "With LDC's backing, we have consistently invested in the business for the benefit of our customers whilst striving to improve efficiency across our service and delivery models, and this approach has resulted in success on a national scale. We're now looking forward to building further on the achievements of the last three years in conjunction with Castik Capital."

Martin Draper, chief executive of LDC added: "The deal with Castik Capital represents an excellent outcome for Angel Springs. The business has a very strong foundation upon which to progress further under its new ownership and we wish the whole team all the very best for the future."