The founding director of Cardiff-based creative agency CREO Interactive has sold 75% of the business to three co-directors in a management buyout.
Richard Ward sold his interest in the company to Jordan Thorne, Kat Shaw and Nick Coakley, while still retaining a 25% share.
The three co-directors become joint owners of the business with a six-figure loan from the Development Bank of Wales secured as finance.
Funding for the management buyout came from the £500m Wales Flexible Investment Fund. Supported by the Welsh Government, the fund is for deals between £25,000 and £10 million. Loans, mezzanine finance, and equity investments are available with flexible terms of up to 15 years.
Starting out as a two-man company operating from a small bedroom in 1999, CREO is now one of Wales’ most established agencies with a team of 12 and a client portfolio that includes Microsoft, BMW, Welsh Government, NHS Wales and Snowdonia National Park.
Mr Ward first established the business with Andrew Ashton who he later bought out in 2019.
Mr Ward said: “CREO has been a massive part of my life for the past 22 years and making the decision to hand part of that over meant finding the right management team.”
He added: “Having benefitted from the support of the Development Bank when I bought out Andrew as co-founder, I knew that it made absolute sense to work with them again on this deal. It’s always been my exit plan to initiate a management buyout so we’ve spent the last few years preparing for a handover."
Technical director Mr Coakley was the company’s first ever employee 20-years ago.
He said: "Seeing the company evolve and adapt to an ever changing technical and strategic landscape has been a rewarding and challenging experience and I am really honoured that I now have the opportunity to be part of the team leading the next stage of our journey with the on-going support of Richard as a shareholder."
Creative director Mr Thorne said: “I think we’re at an incredibly exciting moment in the organisation's history. We’ve gelled and bedded in as a team over the last two years and really made strides in who we approach and how we approach them.”
He added: “What’s most important for me is the ability to be selective, to really focus on quality clients with shared values. We’ve seen the organisation grow from working within Wales to expanding to the States and beyond but creating quality work that speaks for itself as we do it. We have a responsibility to highlight and promote how much creativity there is in Wales and bring that to the forefront globally.”
Strategic director Ms Shaw said: "We’ve developed our offering over recent years and now approach projects from a branding-first perspective. This gives clients better end results with greater return on investment whilst expanding our own product offering. I’m personally looking forward to developing this further and continuing to build a strong branding agency that delivers on clients' digital needs."
Daniel Kinsey, portfolio executive with the Development Bank of Wales, said: “CREO Interactive has evolved from a website development company into a leading full-service agency that is profitable and has longevity.
“Having bought out his co-founder in 2019, Richard has first-hand experience of the benefits of a management buyout. He has therefore focussed on investing in and developing an experienced management team to prepare them for the handover as well as incentivising them to want to be part of the future.”
