National law firm Shoosmiths has advised leading property consultants GBR Phoenix Beard on the acquisition of Optic Asset Management, a niche property management company based in London and Leeds.
Shoosmiths corporate partner Ben Turner led the deal with assistance from corporate solicitor Georgina Gurnhill, tax partner Kate Featherstone and employment solicitor Liz Parkin.
Managing Director of GBR Phoenix Beard, Simon Farrant, said: 'Shoosmiths has done an excellent job of advising us on all aspects of this transaction, successfully combining the expert and practical legal advice needed to close deals. With GBR Phoenix Beard having won a number of significant new mandates over the course of the last 12 months, the need to bolster the scale of our business has become increasingly apparent. The acquisition of Optic Asset Management allows us to further align our business with the geographical profile of our clients' property portfolios.'
Shoosmiths' Ben Turner, said: 'It has been a pleasure to act for GBR Phoenix Beard on this strategic acquisition which reinforces their strong portfolio asset management credentials and should, we hope, deliver new clients and new markets for them. We wish them every success in the future.'
Optic is a niche property asset management company, established by David Offen and James Young in 2003. It has grown to 18 staff, 10 are based in London, whilst 8 operate out of Leeds. Clients of the business include Aberdeen Asset Management, Tiger Developments, Salmon Harvester, Mercer Real Estate, and Cube Real Estate.
GBR Phoenix Beard was established over 40 years ago and now employs around 100 people across the UK. GBR Phoenix Beard also operates a significant property asset management business, acting for some of the UK's leading institutional investors and property companies, including Standard Life Investments, Threadneedle Property Investments, Scarborough Group and IM Properties. Unlike Optic, GBR Phoenix Beard also offers specialist in-house building consultancy, residential, health and safety, and lease consultancy and valuation services.
Shoosmiths' corporate team has advised public and private companies, management teams, investors and debt providers through the business life cycle. Shoosmiths work with businesses from start up and first round finance through to mergers and acquisitions, MBO and MBI transactions, development funding and on exits, by way of sale, listing or private equity investment.
The national corporate team has recently been placed second by deal volume in Experian's UK Deal Review and Advisor League Table.