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This article appeared in the York Press on Tuesday, March 2, 2010.

Curtain firms on track

A North Yorkshire textiles and interiors business has acquired its former sister company to take greater control of its brand as the economy starts to grow.

RE Grafton Ltd, Hookstone Park, Harrogate, which trades as James Brindley, has acquired James Brindley (Furnishings) Ltd, Wetherby – a totally separate business - for “a significant but undisclosed sum” in a deal advised by Jeremy Oliver of accountants Garbutt & Elliott (pictured left with Mark DeOweneley, Financial Partner of RE Grafton Ltd, pictured front centre).

Family business James Brindley, which combines an international design and textiles operation and an interior design service with an interiors store in James Street, Harrogate, has 40 staff and a turnover of more than £5million.

Both businesses were founded as soft furnishings shops in Wetherby and Harrogate, in the late 1960s as part of the same company. They eventually became individual businesses run by different branches of the Grafton family, each with their own commercial aspirations.

The deal sees RE Grafton Ltd acquire the business run from the original Wetherby shop, which has remained a £750,000 turnover blinds and curtains  outlet, and its staff, to merge with the bigger international enterprise which has evolved from the Harrogate side of the business.

RE Grafton financial partner, Mark DeOweneley, who managed the acquisition, said: “We read the economy well, were well prepared for the down turn and have remained strong in spite of the tough trading climate.

“James Brindley (Furnishing) Ltd was a separate company with a totally different business outlook and we have acquired it so we can take control over the James Brindley brand and create clarity and uniformity in all aspects of our business.

“The Wetherby shop is now fully re-furbished and will provide the same products and high-level interior design services as our flagship Harrogate store.

“A company such as ours cannot halt its long-term strategic plans and aspirations just because the economy is tough. This was a move we have had to make now and we are very pleased that it has completed.

“Allied to the investment and changes made in our internet business, it will enable us to capitalise substantially on better trading opportunities when the economic recovery begins.”

R E Grafton Ltd, owned by Mark, Richard and Simon Grafton, expanded from pure retailing to developing its own textile ranges, supplying independent stores throughout the UK as well as exporting to the US, mainland Europe, Russia, Hong Kong and The Middle East.