Staffline completes acquisition of Endeavour

AIM-listed recruitment and employability organisation Staffline has completed the acquisition of Endeavour and its subsidiary Vital for an undisclosed sum.

Staffline said the deal, which is being funded from existing resources and is expected to be earnings neutral this year, "significantly" increases its scale and presence in the East of England, supplementing the group's existing food and agriculture offerings in that area.

For the year to March 2017, Endeavour had a turnover of £83m and a pre-tax profit of £0.5m.

Chief executive Chris Pullen said: "We are thrilled to announce this strategic acquisition of Vital. The acquisition will bring an extensive network of connections and resources in the East of England and will further strengthen our food division and help us to increase our market share in agriculture.

"The acquisition supports Staffline Recruitment's vision 'to be the trusted market leader, providing a single destination for blue collar workers and employers to connect across the UK'. With a number of large blue-chip clients, Vital will help further extend the Staffline network."

Staffline also said it had made two smaller acquisitions in February. It bought UK Distribution Personnel, a driver recruitment agency based in the South East, and M&B Staff Services, which is a staffing recruitment business based in the Republic of Ireland. Both businesses have an annual turnover of less than £5m and a pre-tax profit of less than £0.5m.

At 1055 GMT, the shares were down 1.7% to 934p.