News: Owners jumping for joy following international deal
A trampoline and indoor children’s leisure park operator with eight sites across the UK and its head office in Rotherham has been acquired by an international counterpart.
Jump Inc has been acquired by private equity-backed Norwegian business AirHop.
Founded in 2015 by shareholders and directors Michael Brockelbank and Lee Shipley, with its first park in Parkgate, the Jump Inc group has become one of the largest independent trampoline park operators in the UK.
The company has eight sites in total, including the recently opened West Wood Cross site in Kent, and with a plan for more to come.
All three director shareholders who are currently involved in the business - Michael Brockelbank, Lee Shipley, and Mark Poole - will remain involved for the coming months in a consultancy capacity.
AirHop, which currently has 18 trampoline and activity centres in the UK, is owned by Activeon, Europe’s largest trampoline park operator with a total of 57 parks in the Nordics, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK, and are backed by Norwegian private equity firm Equip Capital.
Michael Brockelbank, director and shareholder at Jump Inc, said: "The sale of Jump Inc is a great success story, the plan was always to create and build a portfolio of sites and sell, which is what we have done as a collective. The future is bright for the business with planned investment in new features that will see the parks get even better for our customers.
"Growing to more than 500 employees in a relatively short period of time has had its challenges but these have been overcome to give us the result we set out to achieve when starting out back in 2015. We will miss our work colleagues who are also good friends but at the same time wish Tim and AirHop luck moving the business and sector forward."
Advertisement
Tim McClure, managing director, AirHop, added: "We are very pleased that Jump Inc has joined AirHop as we continue to expand and really strengthen our business in and around Yorkshire. Lee, Michael and Mark have established a great business that puts the guest experience at the centre of every decision. We look forward to working with the fantastic staff at Jump Inc as we continue to grow and invest in new activities for our guests."
Castle Square Corporate Finance Assistant Manager Joseph Potts led on the transaction, providing expert corporate finance advice and project management services to oversee the deal to successful completion.
Joseph Potts said: "I am absolutely delighted to assist Michael, Lee, Mark and the rest of the shareholders with their long-term exit plans from the business. They have managed to build one of the most well-known trampoline park brands in the UK and it is satisfying to see them being rewarded for all their hard work. We have also given AirHop and Activeon a massive opportunity to expand their foothold in the UK even further and establish themselves as the go-to trampoline park in the UK."
The Sheffield office of Yorkshire-based law firm Lupton Fawcett, led by partner Rory Conwill, provided legal advice to the shareholders.
Conwill added: "My colleagues and I are very pleased to have supported Michael, Lee, Mark and the wider Jump Inc team on the sale of the business to AirHop. Jump Inc is a high-quality, Yorkshire-based business that has attracted overseas inward investment into the region. We wish Tim and the wider AirHop team every success for the future."
AirHop was advised by London-based commercial law firm Ignition Law.
Jump Inc website
Images: Jump Inc
Read more...
Jump Inc has been acquired by private equity-backed Norwegian business AirHop.
Founded in 2015 by shareholders and directors Michael Brockelbank and Lee Shipley, with its first park in Parkgate, the Jump Inc group has become one of the largest independent trampoline park operators in the UK.
The company has eight sites in total, including the recently opened West Wood Cross site in Kent, and with a plan for more to come.
All three director shareholders who are currently involved in the business - Michael Brockelbank, Lee Shipley, and Mark Poole - will remain involved for the coming months in a consultancy capacity.
AirHop, which currently has 18 trampoline and activity centres in the UK, is owned by Activeon, Europe’s largest trampoline park operator with a total of 57 parks in the Nordics, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK, and are backed by Norwegian private equity firm Equip Capital.
Michael Brockelbank, director and shareholder at Jump Inc, said: "The sale of Jump Inc is a great success story, the plan was always to create and build a portfolio of sites and sell, which is what we have done as a collective. The future is bright for the business with planned investment in new features that will see the parks get even better for our customers.
"Growing to more than 500 employees in a relatively short period of time has had its challenges but these have been overcome to give us the result we set out to achieve when starting out back in 2015. We will miss our work colleagues who are also good friends but at the same time wish Tim and AirHop luck moving the business and sector forward."
Advertisement
Tim McClure, managing director, AirHop, added: "We are very pleased that Jump Inc has joined AirHop as we continue to expand and really strengthen our business in and around Yorkshire. Lee, Michael and Mark have established a great business that puts the guest experience at the centre of every decision. We look forward to working with the fantastic staff at Jump Inc as we continue to grow and invest in new activities for our guests."
Castle Square Corporate Finance Assistant Manager Joseph Potts led on the transaction, providing expert corporate finance advice and project management services to oversee the deal to successful completion.
Joseph Potts said: "I am absolutely delighted to assist Michael, Lee, Mark and the rest of the shareholders with their long-term exit plans from the business. They have managed to build one of the most well-known trampoline park brands in the UK and it is satisfying to see them being rewarded for all their hard work. We have also given AirHop and Activeon a massive opportunity to expand their foothold in the UK even further and establish themselves as the go-to trampoline park in the UK."
The Sheffield office of Yorkshire-based law firm Lupton Fawcett, led by partner Rory Conwill, provided legal advice to the shareholders.
Conwill added: "My colleagues and I are very pleased to have supported Michael, Lee, Mark and the wider Jump Inc team on the sale of the business to AirHop. Jump Inc is a high-quality, Yorkshire-based business that has attracted overseas inward investment into the region. We wish Tim and the wider AirHop team every success for the future."
AirHop was advised by London-based commercial law firm Ignition Law.
Jump Inc website
Images: Jump Inc
