Chartered accountants PKF Francis Clark and law firm Bond Dickinson have been praised for their work advising the Gillett family on the disposal of Gillett’s (Callington) Limited, operator of 63 SPAR stores located throughout Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire.
The buyer was Appleby Westward, the Saltash-based regional distribution company servicing SPAR convenience stores in the South West, which is owned by the JSE listed entity SPAR South Africa. Gillett’s has worked in partnership with Appleby Westward since its business was founded 32 years ago when John Gillett decided to move out of farming. The family has retained ownership of the freehold properties from which the business trades, representing around half of the stores, and they will continue to act as landlord, which should generate a robust income stream.
Alan Cookson, Director of Gillett’s (Callington) Limited, said: “The whole family were very pleased with the teams at PKF Francis Clark and Bond Dickinson in the way they handled the complex negotiations involved. It was a very good deal for both parties and we always felt we were in very safe hands with the whole team of advisors. It is especially pleasing that we completed the deal with Appleby Westward as we have successfully worked in partnership with AW since our business was founded 32 years ago and going forward we are pleased that the stores will now remain part of the SPAR network.”
The Bond Dickinson team, from the firm’s Plymouth and Bristol offices, was led by Corporate Partner Tom Fitzpatrick. He was supported by Sammy Hill (corporate), Adrian Beddow and Lucie Hadwick (real estate) Julian Kinsey (banking), Ronan Lowney (tax) and Rachel Jones (employment).
The PKF Francis Clark team was led by Paul Crocker, Corporate Finance Partner, assisted by Nick Tippett, Corporate Finance Senior Associate, and Gordon Fox, Tax Partner.
Tom Fitzpatrick, at Bond Dickinson, said: “We were delighted to assist the Gillett family in achieving a successful sale of this family business. It is another example of the great regional deals we generate from our South West offices and we enjoyed working with Paul Crocker’s team at Francis Clark.”.
Paul Crocker, of PKF Francis Clark, added: “Since purchasing their first store in 1984, Gillett’s (Callington) Limited has grown into one of the largest Independent retailers in the country. We are very pleased to have helped the Gillett family realise their ambitions and ensure that this highly successful business continues to thrive for many years to come under its new owners.”
Note to Editors:
About Bond Dickinson
Bond Dickinson is a leading UK law firm providing a comprehensive legal service to clients across a wide range of sectors, from seven cities across the UK including Plymouth, Bristol, Southampton and London.
Bond Dickinson’s national corporate team provides a full service for clients with specialist advice on areas such as tax, real estate, employment, pensions, competition, regulatory and litigation.
We have one of the largest dedicated retail sector legal teams in the UK market, with clients such as Kingfisher Group, J Sainsbury plc, the Post Office, Specsavers and New Look.
About PKF Francis Clark
PKF Francis Clark is a UK top 25 accountancy firm with annual revenue of £38 million, a team of more than 580 people and 59 partners. Founded in 1919, the award-winning independent firm has eight offices across Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Hampshire, Somerset and Wiltshire. PKF Francis Clark, is currently ranked 22nd in the Accountancy list of top 75 firms.
For media inquiries involving PKF Francis Clark please contact Andrew Diprose, Director, Deep South Media Ltd, on 01202 534487.