West Sussex-based furniture company Maker&Son, founded in 2018 by Alex Willcock and his son Felix Conran, has been acquired by investment group Inc & Co in a substantial multi-million-pound transaction.
Operating from its headquarters, design studio, and showroom in Balcombe, the company has expanded its global presence, with manufacturing facilities in the UK, Ireland, the United States, Australia, Asia, and New Zealand, allowing for local production in these markets.
The brand, which was recently independently valued at £55 million, employs 150 people. Maker&Son is particularly well-known for its viral ‘Sofa Jump’ advertising campaign launched in 2018.
This marketing strategy is essential for the brand as they do not sell in physical stores, instead engaging directly with customers through their ‘mobile’ showroom.
Felix Conran, co-founder of Maker&Son, stated: “Our vision for the business was to put our products and people – both our team and our clients – at the heart of what we do. With this comes a true sense of British heritage and belonging for our teams, and our clients alike.
“The sale will enable us to continue our vision of creating luxury sustainable furniture. We are delighted that Inc &Co have seen the value in what we have achieved to date and are excited to work with them to write the next chapter for Maker&Son.”
The Manchester-based investment group Inc & Co will now take full control of the Maker&Son group, including its international operations. Established three years ago, the group recently reported a £30 million turnover in its second year.
Maker&Son is the latest addition to Inc & Co’s portfolio of acquisitions, which includes luxury leather brand KNOMO London, food and beverage brand Chop’d, and King Street Grooming.
Inc & Co plans to expand Maker&Son by establishing 20 new regional locations for its mobile showroom over the next 18 months.
Jack Mason, the CEO of Inc & Co, said: “Inc & Co pride itself on being known for expediting acquisitions in an extremely diligent and human-centric way. We are excited to be joining Maker&Son on its business journey. It is a distinguished brand, with provenance and vision. The fast and international growth to date has proven the strength of the product and we’re looking to expand on this further.
“Inc & Co, much like Maker&Son, is honed on creating and delivering products and services for the modern, sustainably conscious and digitally aware customer. Maker&Son fits seamlessly into the Inc & Co portfolio of brands and we can’t wait get under the skin of the business.”
