Marshall board accepts £325m takeover offer from WeBuyAnyCar owner

Constellation Automotive made a bid after the family behind the Cambridge-headquartered dealership chain said it was looking to sell.

The car dealership has been in family hands for over a century. (Andrew Matthews/PA) (PA Wire)

The board of Marshall Motor has said it will accept a £325 million takeover offer from the private-equity backed company behind WeBuyAnyCar.

Marshall said that it thought the terms offered by Constellation Automotive were “fair and reasonable”.

“Following careful consideration of both the financial terms of the offer and Constellation’s stated intentions regarding the conduct of the MMH (Marshall Motor Holdings) business under Constellation’s ownership, the board intends to recommend shareholders accept the offer,” it said in a statement to shareholders on Monday.

The announcement comes a week after Constellation jumped into the race to buy the Cambridge-headquartered group.

It bid after the Marshall family, which owns more than 64% of the business, said just two weeks ago they were interested in selling.

The family has already accepted Constellation’s bid, so it now falls to Marshall’s remaining shareholders to decide their future.

It would take the company out of family ownership after more than 100 years. In that time Marshall has become the seventh largest motor dealer group in the UK, the company claims.

It runs more than 160 franchised dealerships.

Constellation is owned by UK private equity company TDR Capital, and sits behind brands like Cinch and WeBuyAnyCar.

Last year it traded around 1.5 million cars.

Constellation said that it is “focused on broadening its offering for both consumers and business partners across the UK and Europe and the potential acquisition of Marshall continues this strategy”.

Constellation has promised not to change the conditions under which any staff are employed or to tweak the “balance of the skills and functions of MMH employees or management”.