E3 founders complete MBO
The co-founders of digital marketing agency E3, Stuart Avery and Mike Bennett, have regained a full stake in the agency after completing a management buyout.
The deal sees the pair become 100% shareholders of the Bristol-based agency while non-executives Dougal Templeton and Scott Davidson have left the business.
Avery (left) and Bennett (right) launched E3 while at university in 1997 from the cellar of their student house in Bedminster. They took on investment from Davidson and Templeton to help grow the business at the height of the dot com boom.
The investment saw the agency grow rapidly and within months its shareholders had rejected an offer of £7.5m to sell 51% of the agency to a London-based investment company.
Having survived the burst of the dot com bubble, E3 has now grown to house 45 creatives and developers between its Paintworks studio in Bristol and an office in London.
Avery said: "When Scott and Dougal invested back in 2000 they were heavily involved with the development of the company, but over the last five to six years have left us to get on running the business so we’ve been keen for some time to take full ownership.
"Despite the current climate we’ve had a great start to the year with our busiest quarter ever. Who knows how much recession will affect us over the coming months, but we’re keeping positive, paying close attention to profitability and will continue with our plans to grow and invest into both Bristol and London.”
Following the departures of the previous shareholders, Bennett added that the immediate plan is to boost the agency at board level.
He said: "We’ll be inviting some of our senior management team to join us on the board to help drive the company forward and we’re also on the hunt for some non executives to sit around the table with us.”