ACMS adds Northdowns to portfolio

by Gaby Huddart

ACMS, the Thames Valley-based contract caterer acquired by the Granada Group last October, has started the year with the acquisition of Surrey-based Northdowns Catering.

The deal adds 50 contracts in the South-east of England and an extra £5.5m to ACMS's turnover. ACMS previously held 59 contracts and turned over £8m a year.

Martin Waller, managing director of both ACMS and Granada's Fairfield Catering arm, said the wheels were in motion for the acquisition of Northdowns well before Granada bought ACMS.

He added that the Northdowns brand would remain and would be kept separately from Granada's contract catering giant Sutcliffe (News, 5 October).

"Northdowns Catering is a small acquisition. It is a natural fit with ACMS, which was already in discussions with Northdowns for six to nine months when we acquired it. This was a friendly acquisition," Mr Waller told Caterer.

"We will continue to use Northdowns as a branded name in the area in which it currently operates, although we will not extend it further than its original geographic boundaries," he added.

The co-founders of Northdowns, chairman Kenneth Mayhew and managing director Ray Patching, who last year strenuously denied rumours their company was on the market, are both retiring following the acquisition.

The pair are to work on a consultancy basis for six months, however, to ensure a smooth transfer of the company.

lNorthdowns Catering has beaten three other contractors to win a three-year contract at the newly constructed Basildon Crown and County Courts, Essex. It is expected to turn over £70,000 a year.