Research and Marketing Plus CEO Leads MBO

In the UK, Phil Evans, the CEO of Cardiff-based agency Research and Marketing Plus, has led a management buy-out (MBO) for an undisclosed amount.

Evans, who joined the firm in January, is in charge of the five-strong MBO team which has acquired the business from Chairman Sheila Jones, whose late husband Trevor founded the firm in 1968.

The deal is part funded by the MBO team, with support from regional business investor Finance Wales, the Bank of Scotland and the Welsh Assembly Government's Single Investment Fund.

Jones will remain in her current role until the end of the year, after which she is likely to take on a consultancy role.

'It has long been my ambition not merely to retire, but to pass this company on to someone who wished to own manage and further develop the services,' Jones explains. 'I am thrilled that Phil has successfully steered a management buy-out.'

Research and Marketing Plus, which employs a team of eighty at its Cardiff Bay HQ, conducts both market research and direct marketing. Its services include phone, field, postal and online surveys, as well as focus groups and hall tests. In addition, it specialises in dealing with hard-to-reach groups.

The company, which operates market research and direct marketing divisions, has a turnover of £2m. It services blue chip clients from across the UK in a number of sectors including tourism, retail, media, education, environmental and charities.

'As a management team we have a three-year plan for developing the business and we are investing now in our systems, equipment and training,' Evans states. 'The backing of three major financial institutions is, for me, a real vote of confidence in our vision for this business.'



Web site: www.rmltd.net .