Expanding childcare group acquire Bourne Valley Nursery School Limited in Salisbury, Wiltshire.
Bourne Valley Nursery Ltd was founded by husband and wife partnership, Gaenor Nokes and Martyn Nokes in 2001 when they opened their first setting at Winterbourne Earls, Salisbury. As the success of the nursery continued, so did demand for the quality of childcare services. In order to accommodate this demand, they continued to grow over the 17 years to create the impressive group of 5 settings. This hard work ultimately paid off, as the group of 5 settings swiftly sold in just 11 days.
With a combined capacity of 289, the nursery settings provide childcare for 0 to 5-year-olds. All settings hold “Good” or “Outstanding” Ofsted grades and one has Bristol Standards QA.
Due to the vendors’ desire to retire, they entrusted Redwoods Dowling Kerr with the task of sourcing a buyer for their beloved nursery group.
Once placed upon the market, the group generated a substantial amount of interest with the owners deciding to choose to sell to Kindred Nurseries Kindred Nurseries operate a group of 14 childcare settings. The opportunity of expansion into a new territory, and the high standards of childcare provided was what ultimately influenced the acquisition.
The Buyer commented;
“Kindred currently have 14 settings across London and the South East of the UK. Established in 2015 as Eduko, Kindred have a dedicated central team consisting of experienced childcare experts. With backgrounds in nursery operations, finance, technology and education, Kindred have ambitious plans for expansion. The acquisition of the Bourne Valley Nursery School Limited group of 5 settings takes Kindred into a new geographical location, with an excellent match of pedagogy and high expectations of quality, which underpin the Kindred brand and ethos. Ruth Pimentel, CEO ‘This fabulous group of nurseries will bring our group to 19 settings, and we know they will be a great match for the rest of our group. Mr and Mrs Nokes’ passion was evident, and they were keen to know that the settings would continue to be looked after and further developed. We are excited to start a new phase with Bourne Valley Nursery School Limited being a key part of that development.
Thank you to Redwoods Dowling Kerr, and in particular to Jenna Caldwell, who approached us with the opportunity and helped all parties throughout the process to reach a successful conclusion.”
The Vendor commented;
“Our experience selling our group of four day nurseries, one preschool and two before and after school clubs through RDK was very positive indeed. We were so glad we got the information when we did, we hadn’t realised that we were in such a good position to sell and might have waited longer without knowing. RDKs experience and expertise gave us the confidence to go to market.
The timing for us was perfect, our business had grown and was thriving, but I was struggling with all the business management that the growth was creating. I had come from a teaching background, and whilst I loved all the work with the children; the business side with over 90 staff was getting more and more complex. I knew we needed the support from a strong head office.
Jenna at RDK was great at listening to what we wanted for our company, we were really keen to find a buyer with a compatible ethos and vision, who would continue to nurture our group to continue to thrive. Jenna matched us to several lovely companies that were a very good fit. She helped us through the process and was supportive at all times, often contacting us to ask how we were feeling and checking it was going okay. Jenna had a good measure that it was quite an emotional wrench for us, and I don’t think she could have been more supportive. She was patient, caring and very attentive.
We were astounded at how quickly we had made a good match and we accepted an offer from Kindred. We were able to sell the group as a whole to a very compatible, caring company that we have every confidence will be going places, enabling our legacy to continue and thrive. Ruth and I shared so much of the same passion for a child centred pedagogy that enables a collaborative approach between settings, whilst still giving them the autonomy to have their own personality. For us, it felt like the perfect fit. We left after completion feeling really happy, we had achieved what we saw as a double win for us, the company and also for Kindred.
Kindred have the feel of a very inspiring childcare company, ready for growth and with a tangible commitment to quality. Their process of gathering due diligence was very thorough and professional. Jenna was always on hand to support us and she ensured excellent communication throughout the process.
The hardest part for us as a business owner who had built up something very precious to us over 20 years was telling our team about our decision to leave. The sale had to be kept confidential until everything was signed and confirmed, so the last part happened very quickly. Ruth (CEO) and Annie (head of ops) were a great support throughout the whole process and were brilliant at the end with the transition. Their presentation to our management team was inspiring, they shared their journey so far and really pulled them onboard to share the future vision for Kindred. We left feeling confident our company was in save hands and excited to follow Kindred’s progress in the future. We wish them every future success and would thoroughly recommend both RDK and Kindred to anyone with a small group or individual setting to sell.”
Director of Childcare Jenna Caldwell commented;
“From the moment we were instructed by Gaenor & Martyn, we knew that this opportunity would generate interest from a range of buyers. We also knew that what mattered most to our clients was selecting the right buyer who they felt shared the same values and ethos. From the launch to the sale being agreed, it took just 11 days. I am absolutely delighted for both parties.”
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