Olswang advises on the MBO of Iglu

Olswang has advised the management shareholders of Iglu.com Holidays Limited ("Iglu"), the UK's largest specialist ski and fastest growing cruise holiday agent, on its £19 million secondary management buyout financed by Growth Capital Partners ("GCP").

Iglu was established by Richard Downs in 1998 during the final year of his MBA at London Business School and is now the largest independent retailer of ski holidays and the leading B2C distributors of cruise holidays in the UK with revenue of over £90 million.  The investment by GCP will enable Iglu to expand its brand into the European travel market.

Richard Downs commented, "Olswang was key to ensuring the buyout process went as smoothly as possible.  We were impressed by the excellent service provided in a number of specialist areas. The new relationship with GCP offers an ideal opportunity for Iglu's team to continue what has been an extraordinary period of growth over the past 12 years."

Farbizio Carpanini, Head of the Corporate Department at Olswang commented: "The Iglu management team have built an outstanding business and we were delighted to advise on the transaction and very much hope to develop the relationship further over the next phase of the Company's growth."

The Olswang team was lead by the Head of the Corporate Department Fabrizio Carpanini with assistance from Fiona Twigg, Abigail Wahnon and Iona Millership (Corporate); Mark Joscelyne, Stephen Smith and Robert Sartor (Tax); Michael Deeks and Suzy Giele (Share Schemes); Simon Bernholt (Commercial) and Dan Aherne and Tom Molan (Employment). GCP was advised by Osborne Clarke.