We have advised the Cardiff-based TV and film set design and build company, 4Wood, on the management buyout of the business.
Under the £9m MBO deal, private equity firm Connection Capital has invested £6.4 million to help drive the growth of the business. Connection Capital’s Executive Chairman, Chris Higgs and Non-Executive Director, Travis Baxter, with backgrounds in the TV and film production and media sectors, will join the board.
Corporate Partner and Head of the Hugh James Commercial Team, Aled Walters and his team, provided advice to the founders of 4Wood on all legal aspects of the deal. His team has a strong track record in supporting the media and entertainment industry on a wide range of legal transactions, which has included recently advising Wildflame Productions Limited on its high-profile co-production “Vikings” with Smithsonian. The team also continues to advise Songs of Praise producer, Afanti, on a wide range of matters, and has recently been appointed by ITV to approve certain programme content for a new production.
Established in 2005, 4Wood produces high-quality scenery for a wide variety of media and is said to have an 85 per cent share of the TV and film set production market in South Wales. Boasting strong relationships with the three principal studios there, its recent work includes high-profile productions like His Dark Materials (BBC/HBO), Sex Education (Netflix), Doctor Who (BBC), A Brave New World (Universal), A Discovery of Witches (Sky) and Willow (Disney – premiering later this year).
Commenting on the deal, Corporate Partner, and Head of the Hugh James Commercial Team, Aled Walters said today:
“4Wood has enjoyed a rapid period of growth and is at the forefront of the UK’s burgeoning TV and film industry. It has been a pleasure supporting its founders in securing the backing of Connection Capital, which will help to propel it even further forward on this exciting trajectory. I look forward to seeing what’s next for the business as it continues to realise its vision both in Wales and beyond.”
We have recently strengthened our expertise in the media and entertainment sector, with the arrival of Ilan Jones. He joins the team, after three years as in-house counsel at Welsh broadcaster, S4C. Ilan’s work will focus on advising media companies on all aspects of commercial law, including in particular programme compliance matters.
As we are headquartered in Cardiff, we have strong links with the media industry and recently sponsored the inaugural Wales Screen Summit and the annual BAFTA Cymru Awards.
Speaking about the deal, 4Wood Founder, Lynsey Fisher, said:
“We are incredibly grateful to Aled and the entire team at Hugh James. They guided us step by step through the entire process and were always on hand to offer advice and support. Their expertise and professionalism were second to none.”
The management buyout was awarded Insider Media’s ‘deal of the month’ for July 2022.
