Wire specialist completes management buyout
One of the UK’s leading manufacturers of round, flat and profile wire has completed a management buyout, as it looks to target £15 million annual sales for the first time in its 77-year history.
Alloy Wire International’s senior management team of managing director Tom Mander, technical director Andrew Du Plessis and finance director Adam Shaw, has purchased the business from the current owners, cementing the Brierley Hill firm’s long-term future.
The deal will see all 33 members of staff at the firm at Hurst Business Park, Narrowboat Way, become shareholders in the business, reinforcing a company-wide commitment to each other and its 6,000-strong global customer base.
The trio have also pressed the button on a near £1m investment drive that will see new wet drawing and single hole dry drawing machines arrive during the course of the year, along with an annealing line spooler and several hundred tonnes of raw material.
“This is another major milestone in the history of AWI and gives us the platform to capitalise on recent growth and massive export opportunities,” explained Mr Mander,.
“The new owners have over 45 years’ combined experience of working here, so it was a natural progression for us to step forward and take the business on, with previous MD Mark Venables moving to chairman for the next five years and research and development director Angus Hogarth taking a consultancy role.”
He continued: “There’s something very special about this business and this MBO ensures we maintain and cultivate this for the next 75 years.
“We will continue to focus on our USPs, which include delivering the fastest industry lead times, world class manufacturing quality and an expanding range of exotic alloys.
“It goes without saying that the technical expertise AWI is known for will continue to be a cornerstone of our approach.”
Alloy Wire International manufactures round, flat and profile wire in more than 60 exotic alloys.
It was originally founded in 1946 by John Stockdale in an old ambulance station in Old Hill.
Today, the firm continues to operate across 15 different market sectors and, despite global supply chain disruption, is still delivering material in just four weeks from the order being placed.
Mr Venables, who led the previous MBO in 2013, is delighted that the new owners have come from within the company.
"The new management team are well versed in the Alloy Wire International culture and will also bring a youthful exuberance, passion, and eagerness to innovate traditional processes and industry norms.
“They have already ring-fenced significant investment for the next five years and are keen to work on increasing our international network of agents, with discussions currently taking place on establishing a bigger presence in Egypt and the Middle East.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing how Tom, Adam and Andrew take the business forward and achieve our aim of becoming a £15m business by the end of 2023.”
