Smart Group bolsters portfolio with Moving Venue deal
Foodservice and events company Smart Group has announced its acquisition of London event caterer Moving Venue for an undisclosed sum.
Smart currently comprises a portfolio of catering and event management businesses including Smart Hospitality, Smart by Angela Hartnett and Smart Battersea Evolution. The purchase of Moving Venue is expected to generate a combined annual turnover for the catering division in excess of £12m.
Combined annual turnover across the whole group, which will have a team of 50 working out of offices in London and Manchester, will be more than £20m and includes live events, catering, corporate hospitality and Christmas parties.
Moving Venue, which celebrated 30 years in operation in 2014, counts high profile events such as Man Booker Prize, the Barclaycard Mercury Prize and the Wildlife Photographer of the Year among its past clients.
It has also been named an accredited supplier at a number of venues in the capital and south east including Southbank and Royal Festival Hall, Guildhall and Hampton Court Palace.
Moving Venue will keep its brand identity and operate as a distinct trading division within the group. The product quality, team structure, offices and logistic services will be unchanged by the business deal, with founder and managing director Richard Beggs continuing to oversee the business for a minimum of three years.
Greg Lawson, Smart Group chief executive, described the acquisition as "enormously complementary", adding: "[It] gives us an opportunity to add our Smart by Angela Hartnett brand to the existing offering.
"Moving Venue is a market leader in this segment and was the natural partner. Our two businesses share many of the same values which can only help in our goal to become the UK's most respected catering and creative events organisation."
Richard Beggs, managing director of Moving Venue by Smart, also commented: "It will give us greater dining creativity, a presence in new markets such as corporate hospitality and equally will give Greg an established brand with the legacy of 30 years invaluable experience across the museum and heritage sector. This is definitely mutually beneficial and everyone is excited at the opportunities it brings."
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