Hello Rainmakers,
Cavendish came to Birmingham with a plan: build a team, get back on the Midlands map and give businesses another reason to pick up the phone to an M&A adviser.
Rainmakers subscribers get two unique pieces a week, but also full access to our back catalogue of investigations, scoops, and deeper dives into industry trends (like this one). We also bring you insights from The Secret Investor, and from leaders of VC and PE investors like Endless, BGF and WestBridge.
Twelve months on from its opening in Birmingham Cavendish has more than a new address to show for its move. Three transactions have made it over the line with the Birmingham team materially involved and taking the lead, a major defence deal has helped put it on the radar, and the pipeline is keeping the team busy.
Not bad for a first year in which simply getting the office up and running would have counted as progress.
I spoke to Darren Boocock and Dan Marchington about the team’s first year, the sectors catching its eye and why being in the Midlands means more than having a Birmingham postcode on an email signature.
“We set out to build a team from scratch, re-establish the firm in the market, get people talking and get people familiar with Cavendish as an organisation and what we can offer,” said Dan Marchington.
“That’s been really well received, and we’ve built the team out as well. We’ve completed some deals and we’ve got a strong pipeline,” Marchington added.
For Darren Boocock, Partner the early deal count was a welcome bonus rather than a minimum requirement.
“We were realistic that anything we did in the first 12 months, from a deal perspective, would have been a bonus because clearly you’ve got to find premises, build a team, get back into the market, build a pipeline,” Boocock said.
“The fact that we did three transactions where this team was materially involved and leading on was really good.”
And one deal in particular has given the team a sizable calling card.
Defence is no side mission
Defence and technology have emerged as two of the strongest areas for the Birmingham operation, with the UK’s changing geopolitical environment helping to put defence businesses firmly in the spotlight.
