Lloyd: Progressive partnership
Lawyers should not believe “everything you read” about the negatives of being acquired by private equity, according to the managing director of a Midlands law firm bought last autumn.
“My life hasn’t really changed,” said Neil Lloyd of FBC Manby Bowdler, adding: “They’re eyes-on but very much hands-off in terms of the day-to-day running of the firm.”
FBC was acquired by Horizon Capital last year as the first member of its Adeptio group as part of a ‘buy and build’ strategy. We reported yesterday on the comments on PE investment from Horizon’s Tom Kitchen at an event hosted by solicitors’ insurance brokers Lockton at which Mr Lloyd spoke too.
“Don’t believe everything you read,” he said, when asked about concerns that PE just wanted to squeeze their investments ahead of a sale.
“There’s a lot of perception around private equity that does not come from personal, real experience. I sit in forums with managing partners where they tell me what it’s like and I’m the only one who’s actually working within it.
“And I can tell you my life hasn’t really changed. I’ve just got more money [to put into the business] and I spend more time in London. That’s it. Otherwise, I still spend time with my 210 people in sunny Shropshire and Wolverhampton and so on.
“It might just be Horizon are completely different to anything else that’s out there.”
Mr Lloyd said he had been able to check that Horizon lived up to its promises by talking to Dains, the accountancy firm it bought in 2021 and sold last year.
“That was certainly [their] experience and seven months in, that’s my experience as well. They’re eyes-on but very much hands-off in terms of the day-to-day running of the firm. The culture is still the same.”
A non-lawyer, Mr Lloyd said he was fortunate that the FBC partnership was “quite progressive” and the 16 partners had been united in their approach to Horizon, with all reinvesting in the new Adeptio group at the same rate, irrespective of age, as minority owners.
All of their current and capital accounts have been repaid, and the partners have agreed to roll over at least 50% of their investment when Horizon sells up.
Mr Lloyd said Horizon’s financial support has “allowed me to do things that perhaps I wouldn’t have got through the traditional partnership group”, including two new offices, eight new hires last year and 14 so far this “out of larger law firms”.
“That organic growth along with some of the technology investment will help us go forward. We’ve just gone through the budget process and there’s an acceptance that actually profits will drop because we are investing.”
Employee engagement surveys carried out before and after the transaction has shown no change, he added.
