Commercial property agency Mason Owen has sold its Liverpool insurance brokerage arm to the division’s management team. Tony McDonough reports

Liverpool commercial property agency Mason Owen has sold its insurance brokerage division, Mason Owen Financial Services (MOFS), to its management team

Advised by law firm MHA Moore and Smalley, MOFS managing director Andrew Gibbons along with Michael Longfellow, Keith Burn, Alex Bielinski and Samuel Gosney have acquired the unit and its subsidiaries for an undisclosed sum.

One of Liverpool’s best known commercial property firms, Mason Owen was established in 1967 and specialises in the provision of commercial property investment, landlord and tenant advisory and asset management services.

Its clients include Aviva, Dransfield Properties, Grosvenor Europe, Iceland Foods, Legal & General Investment Management, Lloyds Bank and M&G Real Estate.

Based at 20 Chapel Street, MOFS was established in 1988 and is a chartered insurance broker. It specialises in commercial property and casualty insurance, wholesale and retail professional indemnity insurance and is also one of the UK’s most prominent providers of legal indemnity insurance.

Both Mason Owen & Partners (Holdings) and Mason Owen & Partners Ltd will continue to retain a minority shareholding in Mason Owen Financial Services to reflect the fact the two separate businesses will continue to work closely together.

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It will help each of the businesses to thrive in their own specific markets with greater autonomy over decision making.  The names of all businesses will remain unchanged and the new ownership structures will allow each business to trade individually.

Andrew Gibbons said “We are delighted that as a management team we have been able to develop this business over the past 22 years to the point that we are at with the fabulous support of Barry Owen and everyone within the Mason Owen group of companies.

“We are tremendously excited that we will continue to grow the business with some new and exciting plans for development. We are also pleased that the Mason Owen Group will still retain an interest in the business to allow us both to take mutually advantageous opportunities in the future.”

Barry Owen, chairman of the Mason Owen Group of companies, added: “I am very proud of Andrew and the MBO team and look forward to their future with confidence.”

MHA Moore and Smalley provided corporate finance and tax advice to the management team led by corporate finance partner Andrew Feeke and corporate finance manager Phil Yarwood with support from tax partner Colin Abrahams.

Other advice came from law firm Napthens. Mason Owen and Partners was advised by law firm Brabners and accountants at DSG.