Multi-brand franchisor, Franchise Brands, has acquired the entire issued share capital of Azura Group Limited. The Azura Group Limited develops management software for franchises.
Franchise Brands has funded the acquisition with £850,000 in cash and £150,000 in Franchise Brands shares. It is warranted by the vendors that the cash in Azura’s balance sheet at completion will not be less than £175,000 resulting in a net consideration of £825,000.
The franchisor has worked with Azura since 2018 to develop and customize the “Vision” works management system for Metro Rod and Metro Plumb which is built on Azura’s core system. Franchise Brands saw this acquisition as an opportunity to consolidate its software development and secure ownership of Azura’s intellectual property (IP) and highly-skilled staff.
Franchise Brands is in the middle of its own digital journey, which will be aided and accelerated by Azura’s intellectual property. Earlier in the year, the multi-brand franchisor announced a £1.5m investment into systems development to automate as many processes and interactions as possible.
“I am delighted to announce the acquisition of Azura, which represents an important step in the group’s digital journey. Given the ever-increasing importance of technology to the group and the role Azura has played in the development of our “Vision” works management system at Metro Rod and Metro Plumb, the acquisition of Azura has a strong strategic and commercial rationale in that it consolidates and secures our software development and key IP, as well as bringing an excellent team,” said Steven Hemsley, executive chairman of Franchise Brands.
“We also see an opportunity to grow Azura through combining Franchise Brands’ resources, expertise and experience with Azura’s pre-eminent franchise management SaaS platform to enhance sales to other franchise businesses both in the U.K. and overseas.”
Simon Pullum has agreed to continue as a director, and Sean McAree will continue as software architect. Azura will operate on an arms-length basis within the group.
