Tite & Lewis given a lift by Crane

Tite & Lewis has advised new client Crane Telecommunications Group on the sale of the company's wholly-owned subsidiary Telecommunications Management to Telecom Plus.
The deal also represented an important win for Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) which acted on behalf of Telecom Plus. BLP gained the business after pitching against the company's primary adviser, Nabarro Nathanson.
Crane was introduced to Tite & Lewis by Ernst & Young's corporate finance department. However, Tite & Lewis then had to pitch for the business against two other firms - the company's previous adviser and a top 20 City firm.
"It's the first time the company has completed a transaction like this and I think it was looking for a City firm," said Tite & Lewis partner Malcolm Hurley, who led the team.
Hurley was assisted by Leon Arnold and Rachel Mills. Tite & Lewis also worked closely with Ernst & Young's M&A team on the deal.
It seems likely that Crane will continue to instruct Tite & Lewis on a regular basis. "I think that's the case," said Hurley. "We're always looking for long-term relationships and I'd be disappointed if it didn't turn into that.
"Crane is one of the fastest growing companies in the country," he added. Last financial year it had a total revenue of approximately £80m, an increase of 40 per cent on the previous year.
As the company has no in-house legal capability, the team was instructed by chief executive officer David George.
The BLP team advising Telecom Plus was led by corporate partner Paul Miller, assisted by Theo Jones and Belinda Palmer. Although the firm has acted in a general advisory capacity for the past few years, the company's main adviser has traditionally been Nabarro Nathanson.
This is the first acquisition that Telecom Plus has undertaken and, like Crane, it is also a rapidly growing company.
"Its pre-tax profits were up 61 per cent last year," said Miller. Consequently, it is likely that the amount of work farmed out by the company will increase. But Miller said it was too early to tell where the work will go at this stage.