Entrepreneur goes for growth in skin care and travel

Ian Richardson, a former corporate finance partner at Eversheds, has established Skincity with Dr Magdy Ishak, his business partner in the Covenant Healthcare Group, which the pair sold for 170m in 2005.

Skincity last month bought Aromatherapy Associates, an upmarket spa and beauty products group, in the first of a number of planned acquisitions in the health, beauty and lifestyle markets.

The holding company is preparing to buy an equipment business based in the south of England in the coming months and take advantage of its growing product distribution channels to sell machinery.

Mr Richardson founded another business two years ago called Takemetoo Ltd with Jonathan Wackett, a former corporate financier who was also active in Yorkshire during the 1990s. The company bought the assets of Phoenix Holidays from the receivers of Travelscope, a failed operator with a 70m turnover in 2007.

Takemetoo, which also owns winter holiday group Alpine Tracks, has a turnover of 12m, but this is set to double when the company completes the acquisition of a UK-based holiday company, said Mr Richardson.

After a difficult year in 2008 with an economic downturn, weak pound and rising price of oil, 2009 was a good year for the travel business, he added.

He said: "We have done really well and should make a significant profit."

Mr Richardson qualified as a lawyer in 1983 and became a partner in what would become Eversheds in Leeds in 1989. He worked in corporate finance throughout the decade and saw the city transform itself into a dynamic commercial centre.

One of his clients was Dr Magdy Ishak, a surgeon and businessman, who was chief executive of CrestaCare, a nursing home group.

They became friends and in 2002 formed Covenant Healthcare Group. With 30m backing from Bank of Scotland and 10m from Phoenix Equity Partners, the pair bought Abbey Hospitals for 25m.

Later in 2002 Covenant paid 20m for the Transform Medical Group, the cosmetic surgery business owned by John Ryan, the owner and chairman of Doncaster Rovers.

Covenant also acquired a group of psychiatric hospitals. Three years later, the group was sold in a deal worth 170m, netting big returns for the investors.

Mr Richardson, 50, said: "We took a very large sum out of it. We effectively became financially secure (with] in excess of 20m each."

He now plans to grow the new skin care and travel businesses, with private backing from himself and his partners.

"In relation to Skincity I want to create a personal products group through a mix of organic growth and acquisitions," he added. "In relation to Takemetoo we are looking to create a business which covers a number of niche travel areas such as river cruising and specialist activity holidays."