Howes Percival’s Northampton corporate team have acted on the sale of waste management business Reston Waste Management to Swedish waste management contractor Sortera.
Under the ownership of Andrew Reston, Reston Waste Management grew to be one of the largest independent construction waste companies in southwest London, turning over £27m last year and delivering a £3.7m pre-tax profit. It has now been bought by Sortera, a name only introduced to the UK market last month. Sortera is a Swedish company that was itself acquired by private equity firm Nordic Capital in 2021. A year later it entered the UK by acquiring O’Donovan Waste Disposal and then GBN Services in 2023. Last month, it rebranded them both as Sortera. The addition of Reston Waste makes Sortera the largest independent construction waste company across Greater London. The acquisition is strategically important as it extends Sortera’s footprint into southwest London.
The deal was led by partner Matt Thompson (who also advised Jacqui O’Donovan of O’Donovan Waste Disposal on her sale to Sortera two years ago) and senior associate Will Taylor from Howes Percival’s award winning corporate team (voted Corporate Law Firm of the Year at the Insider Central and East and East Midlands and Regions in 2023 and 2024 respectively). Commercial property advice was provided by Alexandra Kirkwood, employment advice was provided by Sobia Ahmad and tax advice was provided by Sam Moore. Corporate finance support was provided to the sellers by Mike Hughes of Mike Hughes Advisory.
Commenting on the sale, Andrew Reston said:
I am confident that Sortera is the best home for the business that we have built over the years and look forward to our joint future together. Sortera’s values are very similar to how we have run our business, especially with its focus on sustainability and customer satisfaction. We have been delighted with the support provided from Matt, Will and the team at Howes Percival – they’ve guided us really successfully through a complex process, and nothing has been too much trouble for them.
Matt Thompson noted,
We have loved working with Andrew and his wife Sharon on the sale of Reston Waste Management. The sale of Reston is just one of a number of transactions we have been working on over the last few months - despite much political and economic uncertainty over the last few years, we have still seen an increase in instructions from new and existing clients who are keen to grow and expand their businesses, or exit and realise their life’s work. This transaction will be an absolutely super addition to Sortera’s portfolio in Greater London, adding a site south of the Thames to widen their geographical scope. We look forward to keeping a close eye on how the business develops over the next few years and wish Andrew, Sharon and the Sortera team all the best for the future.
For more information on Howes Percival’s corporate advisory services visit: https://www.howespercival.com/services/corporate/
