BGF successfully exits Co Antrim specialist kitchen manufacturer

Northern Ireland kitchen manufacturer and distributor, Uform has agreed a private equity investment with Cardinal Ireland Partners.Founded in 1993 by Eamon and Paul Donnelly, alongside their late father Eddie, Uform employs 415 people at facilities in Co. Antrim and Co. Donegal and delivers more than 1,500 kitchens per week to a growing, loyal and diverse customer base throughout the UK and Ireland.

In a statement, Cardinal Ireland Partners said the Donnelly brothers will remain significant shareholders in the business, alongside BGF, a UK private equity investor.

As part of the deal, BGF will re-invest alongside Cardinal and will continue to back the company as a minority shareholder.

With Cardinal Capital’s arrival, BGF has sold down some but not all of its stake.

BGF first partnered with Uform in 2019, when it made a multi-million equity investment in the business to enable founders to accelerate growth.

As a result of BGF’s investment Uform has, over the last three years, invested in its production facilities and new equipment as well as expanding its product range. This has enabled the business to achieve an annual growth rate of 40% and expand its market share in the UK, NI and RoI markets.

Beyond growth capital, BGF’s Talent Network also introduced Uform to non-executive chair Jim Meredith to provide additional strategic support.

Graham Clarke, investor at BGF, said: “It is fantastic to see Uform attracting new funding to support its ambitious future growth plans. Over the last three years, we have developed a strong relationship with the business and have worked together to deliver an impressive rate of growth. Moving forward, we’re excited to be re-investing in the business and continuing our association with the company as it enters this next phase.

“We are also really pleased to be able to report our first significant exit in Northern Ireland. BGF was set up to back brilliant businesses that are looking to scale and that is exactly what Uform has done. The exit of our original investment has generated a return of greater than 2x with a strong IRR of 25%, which clearly demonstrates the high quality of entrepreneurs and businesses we are backing.”

The new investment in Uform will be used to further increase the operating capacity of its 175,000–sq–ft facility in Toomebridge and to increase capacity at its sister company Andoras in Donegal.

The transaction is subject to clearance from the Competition Authority.

Eamon Donnelly, co-founder of Uform, explained: “We have built a strong relationship with the BGF team, who from day one bought into our vision and strategy of where we want to take the business and provided support. The network BGF brings has opened many opportunities for us across the UK and Ireland and we are delighted that they will continue to remain invested in the company.”

Simon Oliphant, group managing director of Uform, added: “Uform has always had the ambition and the ability to grow. We see considerable opportunity in both the Irish and UK markets. We are pleased that BGF will continue to be an investor as we strive to achieve those objectives.”

BGF has invested in six companies from NI to date: Braidwater, RiverRidge, Audit Comply, Uform, Bob & Berts and Mzuri.