LAVA has announced it’s become the UK’s first boutique M&A advisory firm to transition to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT), reflecting significant recent growth and creating an immensely exciting opportunity for the team.
Founded in September 2020, LAVA was designed to disrupt the M&A industry with its innovative approach to both dealmaking and teambuilding. Partners Simon Woodcock and Hamish Martin launched LAVA with the aim of building ‘a place we actually wanted to work’, and this announcement is testament to their ongoing commitment to the company’s success.
LAVA is a certified B Corp, and commits 2.5% of annual revenue directly to its charity partners, so becoming the first boutique M&A advisory to transition to an EOT further underpins its unique approach and ongoing commitment to doing the right thing for clients, employees, and the community.
The strength of LAVA’s business, combined with the uniquely creative, collaborative culture, drove the partners to take this step to protect the future of both the company and the team. Having handled many EOT transitions in the past, Hamish said of this approach:
‘In this industry there are so many stories of boutique firms being bought up and broken down for parts and we wanted to make sure the team felt secure in LAVA’s future. We’ve advised many clients to go down this route with great success, so it’s only logical that we take our own advice and embrace this new phase of LAVA’s story.’
Hamish Martin LAVA Partner
With 100% of shares transitioning to employee ownership, the company represents a compelling proposition for existing staff and new joiners alike, and will reassure long standing clients that LAVA is here to stay.
Simon commented:
‘Over the past four years LAVA has gone from strength to strength, and it’s really important to us not only that we can continue that growth, but also that we can capitalise on an opportunity to secure the future of our team and make sure they continue to feel truly invested in the company they’ve helped us build.’
Simon Woodcock LAVA Partner
In the past 12 months LAVA has more than doubled its headcount, adding further deep technical expertise as well as investing in both origination and storytelling capabilities to provide additional value to clients and maximise valuations.
Sector-agnostic, instead pursuing interesting themes and compelling companies, LAVA creates bespoke solutions for each and every client, securing its position as M&A advisor of choice for novel or complex deals with a personal touch.
