“Being the first time Palatine PE had used DSW TS, we took a great deal of comfort from the speed with which Cat and Ed got behind not just the financial information but also operational data of the business, enabling early discussions around visitor numbers and cost base. They kept us as an investor informed throughout and, helpfully, maintained their own lines of communication with our CDD provider, with this support remaining in place right up to completion.”
Andy Lees | Investment Director | Palatine Private Equity
Icelolly, one of the UK’s leading online holiday price comparison providers, has completed a £17million management buyout backed by Palatine Private Equity.
Bradford-based Icelolly is a high-growth holiday price comparison provider with the main brand being icelolly.com. The icelolly.com holiday price comparison website offers around 40 million holiday packages from over 50 UK-based tour operators. The business also trades as an online travel agent via a series of brands, as well as selling advertising space via its site traffic and email database.
The company has enjoyed year-on-year growth since it was founded in 2005 and is expected to generate record turnover and profits in the current year.
The buyout was led by Icelolly Chief Executive Officer Dave Clayton, who has 23 years’ experience in the travel industry having spent 11 years at Global Travel before joining the company. The buyout will enable the business to continue to invest in its online network and infrastructure to take advantage of the strong market dynamics.
Palatine Partner Andy Lees and Investment Director Beth Houghton led the deal and will both join the Icelolly board as Non-Executive Directors. Chris Allen the former Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of LateRooms has joined the business as non-executive Chairman.