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Incite Acquired in £11.4m Deal
In the UK, printing group St Ives has acquired consumer insights specialist Incite in a deal valued at up to £11.4m from co-founders Elaine Kent-Smith and Sid Simmons, CEO Roger Banks, and other employees.
 Founded in 2000, London-based Incite employs around 40 staff and has a client base which includes international consumer facing businesses in the FMCG, technology and other sectors. For the financial year ended 28 February 2011, the company generated adjusted EBITDA of £1.7m on revenue of £8.1m.
St Ives has agreed to acquire all Incite's issued share capital for up to £11.4m, with the possibility of further amounts being payable - dependent on financial performance in 2013 and 2014 - for a further maximum payment of £6.1m. Around 70% of the acquisition will be payable in cash, with the balance in new St Ives shares.
Following the acquisition, Incite will operate as a subsidiary of St Ives and will continue to be managed by the existing management team from its current premises.
St Ives CEO Patrick Martell (pictured) says the deal has been struck as part of his firm's strategy to create 'a robust offer' across data, direct marketing, insight and research capabilities.
He added: 'The purchase of Incite is another important step in our development of a portfolio of marketing services capabilities. It has a very high quality offering of both research and consultancy, and an enviable blue chip client base. I am delighted to welcome the Incite team to St Ives.'
Simmons, currently Chairman of Incite, says the deal will enable his firm to expand into different markets and geographies, while also offering opportunities to work with other businesses in the St Ives group.
Last year, St Ives acquired Twickenham-based retail and consumer consultancy <14289>Pragma and field sales and marketing company Tactical Solutions for £15m, and in 2010 it bought direct marketing and data company Occam in a deal worth £12m.
Web sites: www.st-ives.co.uk and www.incite.ws .
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