Graham + Sibbald has acquired property consultancy Aitchison Raffety for an undisclosed price.
The acquisition creates a combined business with more than 370 employees operating out of 26 locations and increases Graham + Sibbald’s revenue from £25m to approximately £35m per annum.
Graham + Sibbald was founded in Dundee in 1959 and specialises in the valuation of hotels, pubs, restaurants and nightclubs. In addition to providing further strength in the areas of valuation, agency and property management, Aitchison Raffety, which employs more than 100 staff across nine offices in England, will bring new service lines to Graham + Sibbald’s offering, including healthcare services.
Les McAndrew, senior partner at Graham + Sibbald, said: “After opening our Manchester office in 2019 and acquiring the well-established chartered surveying firm Keningtons in London in 2022, we have been working hard to build a fully serviced business across the whole of the UK in response to client demand. Now with Graham + Sibbald acquiring Aitchison Raffety, we look forward to welcoming our new colleagues into the combined business and I am confident that this acquisition will further springboard our offering across the UK to both existing and new clients.
“Aitchison Raffety is a well-established firm in England with many similarities to Graham + Sibbald, such as our service platform, our values and our culture. With the combined new services being offered across both firms, the acquisition is a great fit to allow us to offer our clients a truly multi-disciplinary service across the UK. Combined with our new funding model, the new opportunities this acquisition brings everyone is genuinely very, very exciting.”
Ian Wimpenny, managing director of Aitchison Raffety, added: “Joining the Graham + Sibbald Group marks the start of an exciting new chapter for Aitchison Raffety. Their long-established and highly regarded reputation in Scotland, combined with a strong, forward-thinking leadership team and complementary service lines, makes this an unrivalled opportunity for both businesses.
“Bringing together our shared values, nationwide expertise, and deep local relationships creates a powerful combination that benefits both our people and our clients. By uniting our collective talents and resources, we’ll accelerate growth, expand our capabilities, and offer a broader range of market-leading services across the UK.
“Following a record year of turnover and growth, this move builds on our momentum and positions us to thrive in an increasingly competitive and rapidly evolving market. Together, we’re creating one of the UK’s most dynamic, client-focused property consultancies, and this is just the beginning.”
Daniel Halliday, managing director of Foresight, which financed the deal, said: “We are delighted to have completed an investment in Graham + Sibbald, supporting the leadership team’s vision for growth. Graham + Sibbald is already a well known name in Scotland and there is a large untapped opportunity for consolidation in a fragmented market to become a leading player across the UK.”
Graham + Sibbald and Aitchison Raffety will continue to trade as separate entities before becoming fully integrated under the Graham + Sibbald name early next year.
