Dexters is not for sale, confirms CEO Jeff Doble as he quashes rumours

The CEO of Dexters has told The Negotiator that rumours flying around yesterday afternoon that the company is due to be sold to a private equity fund for £130 million are untrue.

This followed suggestions online and among senior players within the industry that an offer is in the offing, but Doble says this is an old rumour that is being recycled. Instead this morning it has revealed a £130 million co-investment deal with City firm Oakfield Capital.

The industry has been gripped by takeover speculation since the New Year as rumoured and then actual deals followed including Connells Group’s purchase of Countrywide and TPFG’s acquisition of Hunters.

But further claims of more takeovers are also swirling including that Foxtons or its former owner BC partners is on the verge of acquiring another major London estate agency.

Foxtons

Foxtons has been on acquisition trail for the past year now, busy snapping up several London lettings agencies and/or their portfolios.

Doble says the rumours about his own company are also inaccurate on another level, pointing out that Dexters is worth more than £130 million being quoted as its sale price.

He is also proud of his company’s internal culture as he reveals during a soon-to-be published interview in the The Negotiator magazine.

But culture is something that rarely stays intact when companies are bought by City funds as they push for warp-speed growth and profits.

The business was established by Doble in 1993 and, through a raft of 20+ acquisitions, they were all eventually been brought under the Dexters brand umbrella in 2016.