WorldEvents' global aim after sale to drugs giant

The Cleckheaton-based company provides event management, logistics and marketing services to an international client base of mainly pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Its new parent company, United Drug has a 1.7bn turnover and provides supply chain, packaging, contract sales and marketing services to healthcare manufacturers and pharmaceutical retailers.

Martin Parry will remain as CEO following the deal, while Graham Keene, majority shareholder and founding chairman of the 24-year-old firm, walks away with a multi-million pound windfall.

In an interview with the Yorkshire Post, Mr Parry said: "We are completely debt free and always have been. We have funded our growth so far from our own profits. But obviously if we want to grow our business globally we recognise that we need to partner and the backing of a plc to take us forward. That's what United Drug brings to us.

"It's a fantastic opportunity for us – they have the financial resources to help us grow more rapidly than we would do through our own organic growth."

WorldEvents, a past winner of the Yorkshire Post Excellence in Business Awards, saw turnover and operating profits increase last year by nearly a third to just under 40m and 1.5m.

It has offices in the United States, Holland, Germany, Hong Kong and Singapore and serves clients including Bayer, Roche and Johnson & Johnson. The company will report into United Drug's contract sales and marketing division, which has expanded through acquisition in recent years.

The Dublin-based plc will carry out a strategic review of the division over the next three months.

Mr Parry said it was too early to say if there would be any redundancies among WorldEvents' 130-strong workforce, but the company would play a key part in the review and have a say in how the division is run in the future.

"At the moment it is very much business as usual," he said. "WorldEvents has a name and a brand that is going to be retained."

Asked how he sees the economy, Mr Parry said: "As far as we are concerned, 2010 is going to be better than we expected. I can't comment on numbers, but we set our targets for this year 12 months ago and I'm very pleased to say we have exceeded them.

"Our clients in the main continue to invest in events. We have found it more challenging in terms of the price competitive nature of the industry and perhaps not as many delegates have been attending events as they have been in the past. That's had an impact on our business but we have grown our client base. We have had a good year and we are certainly looking forward very positively now to the future."

Liam Fitzgerald, chief executive of United Drug, said: "The acquisition, along with our existing events management business, will allow us to meet the growing demand for a global event management service from international pharmaceutical manufacturers and I am delighted to welcome them to the group."

He added: "WorldEvents is now ready to capitalise on its global presence, and with United Drug's resources and expertise behind it, in both event management and the healthcare and pharmaceutical sector, we look forward to rapidly progressing it to the next level."

Graham Keene, outgoing chairman, said: "Having steered the WorldEvents Group to this point, I am now pleased to hand it over to United Drug.

"United Drug is in a strong position to expand WorldEvents Group's global presence and propel the business to even greater success."

United Drug is headquartered in Ireland and listed on both the Dublin and London stock exchanges.