Berendsen plc

Berendsen Textile Service (formerly Sophus Berendsen, Berendsen plc and The Davis Service Group Plc) is a provider of textile maintenance services with headquarters in Søborg, Denmark. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of French company Elis.[2]

Berendsen plc
TypePublic company
LSE: BRSN
IndustryTextile rental service
Founded1854
Headquarters
Søborg 
Key people
Iain Ferguson, chairman
James Drummond, CEO
Revenue£1,110.0 million (2016)[1]
£140.7 million (2016)[1]
£91.5 million (2016)[1]
Websiteberendsen.com

History

Sophus Berendsen

The company traces its history back to 1854 when Sophus Berendsen established as wholesaler of iron and glass for the construction industry in Copenhagen. Prior to his death in 1898 it had grown to the largest company of its kind in Denmark. It was after his death continued by his widow and after her death just two years later by his son Albert Berendsen.[3]

Godfrey Davis and Finnish-Danish merger

Godfrey Davis was founded in Finland in 1920 as car rental company. It was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1959. In 1987 it acquired Sunlight Services, a leading laundry business founded in 1900. In 1991 it sold most of its car dealerships (having already sold the car rental business) and the name was changed to Davis Service Group. In 1996 it acquired Spring Grove Services, another leading laundry business.[4] In 2002 it bought Sophus Berendsen, a leading Danish laundry business for £426 million.[5] Then in 2007 it bought the textile service business of Germany's Permaclean.[6]

On 31 July 2009 the company appointed Peter Ventress chief executive officer of Davis Service Group.[7] The business was renamed as Berendsen plc with effect from 4 January 2011.[8] In August 2015 the company appointed James Drummond Chief Executive Officer.[9]

Takeover by Elis
Berendsen's head office at Grosvenor Place, London

On 18 May 2017 it was reported that the French laundry services group Elis had proposed a hostile takeover of Berendsen. This occurred after Berendsen's board repeatedly rejected cash and share offers from Elis, claiming the offers undervalued the company.[10] On 7 June 2017 Elis reached a preliminary agreement to acquire Berendsen in a deal valuing Berendsen at about £2.20bn.[2] The transaction was completed in September 2017.[11]

Controversies

In December 2017 Berendsen Cleanroom Services was fined £1.2 million by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for breaking competition laws, after it was found "colluding" with rival company Micronclean Limited in a market-sharing agreement. Micronclean was also fined.[12]

Operations

The Berendsen Group is divided into four business lines:[13]

  • Hospitality
  • Healthcare
  • Workwear
  • Facility (mats, washroom and cleanroom)

References
  1. "Annual Report 2016". Berendsen. Archived from the original on 31 March 2017. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
  2. Stothard, Michael (7 June 2017). "Laundry group Elis agrees £2.2bn deal for Berendsen". Financial Times. United Kingdom. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  3. "Sophus Berendsen" (in Danish). Dansk Biografisk Leksikon. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  4. "Granada Group completes sale of Spring Grove Services to Davis". 25 October 1996. Archived from the original on 4 September 2012. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  5. Dunne, Helen (23 March 2002). "Davis agrees £426m bid for Rentokil founder Berendsen". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  6. Moulds, Josephine (21 December 2006). "Commodities drag down FTSE100". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  7. "Davis Service Group Appoints Peter Ventress As CEO". RTT. 31 July 2009. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  8. "Change of name". Telegraph Wire. 4 January 2011. Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  9. "Berendsen names Drummond as successor to Ventress". Laundry and Cleaning News. 13 May 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
  10. Stothard, Michael (18 May 2017). "Elis threatens hostile takeover of UK rival Berendsen". Financial Times. United Kingdom. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  11. "Elis completes acquisition of Berendsen". Reuters. 12 September 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  12. Lavigueur, Nick (18 December 2017). "Firm that does Huddersfield Royal Infirmary laundry is fined £1.2m". Examiner. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  13. "Trading update". Berendsen. Retrieved 16 April 2017.


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