The Almanac Gallery is one of the leading brands within the UK Greeting Card industry. Founded in the early 1990’s by Honor Williams and her husband Darryl the business grew successfully on the basis of its core style and association with high quality art. Based in central London, the company has well over 500 retail customers which include the likes of John Lewis and Selfridges amongst other national retailers as well as many ‘independents’. The business has also developed a strong reputation in the charity card sector and again has built long-standing relationships with some of the UK’s best-known charities such RNLI and The World Wildlife Fund.
Deal Process
Lawrence began working with Honor Williams, the owner of The Almanac Gallery a significant time prior to the eventual sale moving towards active discussions with potential acquirers that began towards the end of 2011. Having spoken to a range of interested parties on an entirely confidential basis, we decided to proceed with The Great British Card Company not only on the basis of a sensible financial transaction but also as a great fit alongside their existing portfolio of greeting card brands which include Paperhouse, Elgin Court and Medici.
Resulting Transaction
The acquisition completed on 15 June 2012. One of the particularly challenging features of a transaction in this industry is its seasonality and the effect this has on cash-flow, this added a layer of complexity that needed working through by both sides in terms of both the structure and the timing of the eventual transaction.
“This represents a unique opportunity for us” commented GBCC Chairman Peter Reichwald. “Almanac have a marvellous reputation for superb design, both in everyday and Christmas, and we are dedicated to building on that in the future” he added.
