Shard Credit Partners has completed a cash equity investment of £1.6 million from its Venture Debt Fund I in support of the acquisition of Sorted Holdings Limited by Location Sciences Group PLC and listing on AIM.
The newly enlarged group will trade on AIM as Sorted Group Holdings PLC (SORT).
The transaction provides the enlarged group with the investment necessary to continue implementing its business strategy and serving its corporate and enterprise retail customers, which include M&S, Boohoo and Asda. It will enable Sorted to continue its mission to bring ecommerce retailers of all sizes confidence in every delivery, every time.
Shard Credit Partners provided Sorted Holdings Limited with a £3.0 million senior secured venture debt facility in September 2022. Since then, the private credit investment firm has continued to provide investment capital in support of a successful organic growth strategy led by CEO Carmen Carey.
Carmen Carey, CEO of Sorted commented:
“Shard Credit Partners has stepped up once again and proven to be a reliable and trusted financial partner. Their latest equity investment in support of our AIM listing demonstrates a strong commitment to our continued growth story.”
Alastair Brown, CEO and Founder of Shard Credit Partners commented:
“we are delighted to be supporting Carmen and her team as Sorted embarks upon the next exciting phase of its journey as an AIM listed company. We hope this IPO heralds a turning point for the UK’s homegrown technology sector”.
Simon Wilkinson, Petar Cvetkovic and Dr Nigel Burton join Sorted’s board, with Mahmud Kamani and Richard Hughes also investing in the group.
Wilkinson is a highly experienced software executive and entrepreneur, having held senior leadership positions in a number of public and private companies throughout his career. Simon is investing in the group, alongside Mahmud Kamani, the founder of Boohoo Group, and Richard Hughes, the founder of Zeus Capital.
Additionally, Petar Cvetkovic and Dr Nigel Burton will join the Sorted board as Non-Executive Directors. Cvetkovic is Founder & Chairman of Welford Investments and was formerly the Chief Executive Officer of DX (Group) Plc and Target Express, and Dr Burton is currently a Non-Executive Director of BlackRock Throgmorton Investment Trust PLC, DeepVerge PLC, eEnergy Group PLC, Mobile
Streams PLC and Microsaic Systems PLC. Mahmoud Warriah, the CFO for the enlarged group, will join Carmen Carey, CEO of Sorted Group Holdings PLC, as Executive Director.
Founded more than a decade ago and recognised as one of the fastest growing companies in Europe by the Financial Times, Sorted delivers transformational tech on a global scale. Trusted by leading retailers – such as ASOS and Asda – Sorted helps brands to make five-star delivery experiences their superpower.
Shard Credit Partners was advised by Scott Morrison, Partner at Orrick LLP and Simon Whiteside, Tax Partner at Ryecroft Glenton and Nicoletta Papademetris, Matt Barr and David Tran at BDO LLP.