Marketing services group St Ives (SIV) has acquiredFripp Sandeman and Partners, a UK-based retail business consultancy. The company's client base includes Ares, Hammerson (HMSO), Legal & General (LGEN), Aviva Investors, M&G Real Estate, Bournemouth Borough Council and Fenwick.
The deal represents a continuation of St Ives' strategy to further enhance the range of specialist consultancy services available to its clients. Shares in St Ives rise 0.9% to 183.63p in response.
The acquired business will operate as a subsidiary of St Ives within its Strategic Marketing segment, working closely with Pragma, one of the group's consultancies, which specialises in retail and consumer markets as well as airports and commercial spaces.
FSP will continue to be managed from its current location in Buckinghamshire by its existing management team, which includes John Fell, Ken Gunn and Jo Hewson.
St Ives said on 11 August that full-year results (to be published on 6 October) were in line with market expectations. Work for supermarkets has been affected by significant changes in the grocery industry. Yet there is an improvement in its books business with volumes stable for the first time in several years.
Shares in the £238 million cap has been relatively flat this year, hovering between 165p and 185p.
