COMMERCIAL lawyers at Watson Burton have helped advise on more than £5m of acquisitions for fast-growing pub chain Wear Inns.
Its most recent addition was the Townhouse, Whitley Bay, taking its portfolio to 15.
Wear Inns specialises in the acquisition and management of freehold pub premises in the North of England, under the direction of managing director John Weir, operations director Frank Malone and chairman John Sands.
It was set up in 2006 and its rapid growth is set to continue with the owners aiming to have more than 20 pubs by the end of the year.
Led by corporate solicitor Paul Wigham, the Watson Burton team negotiated the acquisition of the Townhouse from Cougar Leisure.
The deal involved cross- departmental input from senior level corporate finance, regulatory and property lawyers.
This acquisition follows a busy 12 months of partnership between Wear Inns and Watson Burton, which has seen the firm acting for the pub company on numerous matters including national acquisitions from Mitchells and Butler, Punch, TCG Inns and Barracuda Pubs and Bars.
The firm has also advised Wear Inns on the acquisition of regional pubs including the Black Bull in Boldon, which has seen the company further strengthen its reputation in the North East.
Watson Burton has acted for Wear Inns in relation to both banking and private equity-raising exercises from Royal Bank of Scotland and NVM Private Equity.
Duncan Reid, head of corporate at Watson Burton, said: “In the current economic climate it is great to see northern businesses expanding and benefiting the local economy.
“As a firm that is passionate about our North East roots, we are pleased to be able to support such a highly successful and acquisitive business such as Wear Inns to achieve its commercial objectives, and we look forward to working with the company as it continues its growth strategy.”
John Weir, of Wear Inns, said: “We pride ourselves on owning good quality establishments and we are delighted to add the Townhouse to our pub family.
“Whitley Bay is an iconic Northern seaside town, which fits very well with our commercial ethos.”
