Anthesis completes deal for Spanish sustainability consultancy
A second deal in the space of a month has seen the London headquartered Anthesis Group, a global sustainability services and solutions provider acquire 200-employee multi-disciplinary sustainability agency Lavola. The deal sees Anthesis pick up offices in Spain, Andorra and Colombia; the Lavola team, meanwhile, gains access to Anthesis’s international network.
Anthesis is a global sustainability services and solutions provider. The firm develops financially driven sustainability strategies, underpinned by technical expertise and delivered by innovative collaborative teams across the world. The professional services firm has clients from across the industrial spectrum, including Reckitt Benckiser, Cisco, Tesco, The North Face and Target, catering to the demands of these firms with expertise from offices in the US, Canada, Colombia the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Sweden, Spain, Andorra, Finland, China, the Philippines and the Middle East.
Having grown to 250 experts, and continuing to achieve annual sales growth in excess of 25%, 2019 ambitions will see the company integrate more industry talent and consultancies, expanding services and geographic reach. Since its formation in 2013, the rapidly growing firm has made a total of 12 acquisitions to enhance its global footprint. This includes deals for Best Foot Forward, UMR, Caleb Management Services, Second Nature, M4C, LRS Consultancy (who also acquired Urban Mines), TEP ME, Mosaic Sustainability, Enveco SE, Sustain and MADE-BY. GoodBrand became the latest of these additions in February 2019.
Now, Anthesis has added a 13th firm to its network with the purchase of Spanish sustainability consultancy Lavola. The move will see the two companies merge together under the Anthesis Group name, bringing on board more than 200 staff from Lavola – giving Anthesis access to Lavola’s Barcelona headquarters, as well as offices in Madrid and Manllea elsewhere in Spain, and locations in Andorra and Colombia.
Lavola was established in 1981 by incumbent President Pere Pous, and has since become one of the largest independent sustainability agencies in Spain, delivering more than 1,000 projects for over 400 public and private sector clients, including the European Investment Bank, Madrid City Council, Braun Healthcare, Mango (clothing retailer) and the European Commission. It offers a plethora of services focused on social responsibility, climate change, efficient energy use, urban and regional sustainable development, communication and education for sustainability.
Commenting on the deal, Stuart McLachlan, Anthesis Group’s CEO said, “We are excited to have found Lavola, a firm that reflects so many of the values and specialisms of Anthesis, based in a market that is increasingly progressive and important in Europe and South America. We see many opportunities to travel Lavola’s expertise to our clients and markets around the world, and to further strengthen their position in their domestic and international markets. We are delighted that Lavola have chosen to join us and we are thrilled to welcome our new colleagues to the Anthesis Group.”
Pere Pous, of Lavola added “Through this merger Lavola strengthens its portfolio of services while also being able to respond to international projects with greater magnitude. The combined group will provide clients with heightened expertise, tools, methodologies, knowledge and innovation, while enabling Lavola to access an international market. Our colleagues will also benefit from the merger with the new career opportunities available to them through access to global projects.”