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FROM THE EDITOR
“Fantastic companies are still
being bought for sizable sums,
arguably because acquirers with
Mergers and Acquisitions Magazine
JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2009
firepower realise the importance
Editorial, Sales, Circulation and Finance
of gaining market share”
Vitesse Media Plc, Octavia House,
50 Banner Street, London EC1Y 8ST
020 7250 7010
W
hen banks refuse to lend, they cease to be banks. There has to come a
Editor Patrizia Rossi 020 7250 7066
point this year when these shell-shocked financial institutions realise
Managing Editor Marc Barber 020 7250 7020
that lending is what they do and money begins to flow again for deals.
Editor-in-Chief Leslie Copeland 020 7250 7014
Not that things will ever be the same, of course. Everyone is seeking to adjust to
Journalists James Crux, Oliver Haill, Nick Britton, Robert Tyerman
these ascetic new conditions, from accountancy firms to corporate finance houses,
Head of Research Oliver Haill 020 7250 7022
because 2009 is going to be a lean year.
Head of Production & Design Neill Purvis 020 7250 7018
Senior Designer Sarah Barnett
When a deal is on the table, the question of price soon arises. What is a
Designers Julian Ellis, Minh McCormack
reasonable price for a solid, profitable, well-run business in the current
Group Sub-editor Alan Dobie
Sub-editor Emily Adenipekun
environment? Here are some soundbites from advisers I’ve spoken to recently:
Circulation & Subscriptions Charlotte Randall 020 7250 7056
“For good businesses, prices have remained the same surprisingly.”
Group Sales Manager Martyn Black 020 7250 7037
“Prices are not really what they were a year ago.”
Sales Executives Joshika Begum 020 7250 7061
“Entrepreneurs need a reality check as pricing is unrealistic at the moment.”
Jordan Lee 020 7250 7958
“We’ve had an increase in the number of people looking to acquire,
Reprints Liz Robinson 020 7501 1071 vitesse@rl-centre.com
so that’s to the seller’s advantage.”
Online Sales Manager Rebecca Borrows 020 7250 7028
Online Sales Executive Matt Salandy 020 7250 7034
Everyone, admittedly operating in their own niche area with particular
Events Manager Jenna Parker 020 7250 7043
market idiosyncrasies, believes what they are seeing is correct. But where they
generally agree is that pricing in the mid-market has not fallen drastically, yet.
Fantastic companies are still being bought for sizable sums, arguably because
Vitesse Media Plc
Chief Executive Officer Sara Williams 020 7250 7010
acquirers with financial firepower realise the importance of gaining market share
Chief Operating Officer Leslie Copeland 020 7250 7010
and opening new sales channels. Besides, pricing has always been something of a
Finance Director Kym Kingwill 020 7250 7010
Managing Director (Business)
dark art when you go beyond the sums of EBITDA multiples.
Niki Baker 020 7250 7042
For the wider market, where companies aren’t exceptional, the danger is that
Deputy Managing Directors (Business)
Jonathan Sumner 020 7250 7032
deals will continue to come unstuck not only because of risk-averse banks,
Marc Barber 020 7250 7020
but also due to entrepreneurs who are disappointed that they’ve missed the boat
Deputy Managing Directors (Investment)
Darren Griffin 020 7250 7049
and are refusing to accept lower valuations.
Keiron Root 020 7250 7026
Certainly, attitudes need to change here. Domestic dealmaking plunged to its
Commercial Director Michael Beech 020 7250 7953
Account Director (Information Age) Katrina Neal 020 7250 7950
lowest level for 15 years and globally 1,309 deals worth $911 billion were
Group Sales Manager (Events) Ben Brougham 020 7250 7051
abandoned compared with 870 worth £1.1 trillion during 2007.
Sales Manager (Business XL) Fraser Owen 020 7250 7033
Sales Executives Will Dobson (Information Age) 020 7250 7952
These figures will look like a renaissance when 2009 comes to a close if banks
John Bromley (Information Age) 020 7250 7954
don’t remember their reason for being and entrepreneurs – in terms of price – and
Dan Solomon (Investment) 020 7250 7045
Hiramoni Sarma (Investment) 020 7250 7031
advisers – in terms of fees – accept the world has changed irrevocably.
Mike McKenzie (events) 020 7250 7029
Online Sales Support Mohammed Jiwa 020 7250 7030
Brand Marketing Manager Elena Weisenburger 020 7250 7040
Marketing Executive Danica Pasinis 020 7250 7039
Subscriptions (Information Age) Calvin Green 020 7250 7056
Database Administrator Nicholas Bhoopongsa 020 7250 7050
PATRIZIA ROSSI
Financial Controller Cathy Humphrey 020 7250 7010
patrizia.rossi@vitessemedia.co.uk
Group Credit Controller Maria Eyre 020 7250 7053
Accounts/Admin Assistant Kay Porter 020 7250 7046
All rights reserved. No part of Mergers & Acquisitions Magazine may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or
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transmitted in any other form, or by any other means, electronic, mechanical, photographic, recording or otherwise,
without the prior written permission of the publishers. The contents of Mergers & Acquisitions Magazine are subject
to reproduction in information storage and retrieval systems.
Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of material published in Mergers & Acquisitions Magazine. However, the
publishers cannot accept responsibility for claims made by manufacturers, advertisers or contributors. The views
expressed are not necessarily those of the editor or the publishers. Although all reasonable care is taken of all material,
photographs and transparencies submitted, the publishers cannot accept any responsibility for damage or loss.
The articles and company profiles in Mergers & Acquisitions Magazine are intended only as general information
and should not be used as the basis for investment decisions. Readers considering any specific investment should
Vitesse Media Plc is a member of the
Periodical Publishers Association
always obtain professional, independent advice. M&A Deals and its staff do not accept liability for any loss suffered
by readers as the result of any such investment decision.
www.mandadeals.co.uk
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