When Adgen began its journey it was a small biotech company specialising in food safety diagnostics, run by two academics with little previous business experience. It was part of the Scottish Agricultural College, and had reached a stage where it required further funding (and management focus) to deliver the next stage of its growth.

Thanks to a solid business plan and excellent market opportunities it successfully achieved funding from both 3i and SDF (now SEP). By focusing on the best commercial opportunities in its market it grew both quickly and profitability, attracting the interest of trade suitors. It is now known as Neogen Europe, and turned over close to £10 million last year.

Click here to read how the company made the transition from start-up, to spin-out and eventual sale to a US listed company with our MD, Paul Yacoubian.

Last month we helped an existing client to complete a small acquisition which will immediately add 15-20% to the turnover of their business. This was possible as the vendors (all in their 60s) were looking to take a step back from the business and realise some value. This highlights a significant opportunity for companies which have stayed healthy through the recession: namely that of acquiring smaller competitors or complementary businesses. Such transactions offer the following benefits:

• Instant growth
• Competitive price
• Scope to exploit previous underperformance in the acquired business
• New customers/products/markets

What does it take to not only make an acquisition, but also make sure that the opportunities are exploited fully? In our view there are a small number of key items to get right to give an acquisition the best chance of success.

Click here to read our straight forward guide to making the most of bolt-on acquisitions.