Springboard advise MCM Comic Con on its sale to ReedPOP
November, 2017 - Birmingham, England
Springboard Corporate Finance has advised the shareholders of leading pop culture events producer MCM Comic Con on its sale to ReedPOP.
MCM Comic Con was co-founded by Bryan Cooney, premiering the show in 2002 as the London Expo. The next few years saw London Expo grow and flourish. In 2004, it rebranded as London MCM Expo – the ‘MCM’ standing for ‘Movies, Comics, Media’; and in 2005, it took the first steps that would transform it from a collectors’ and autograph event into a comic con, with the addition of dedicated comics and anime areas plus film and TV content. More recent years saw MCM spread its wings, launching events across the UK and Europe.
ReedPOP is a boutique group within Reed Exhibitions (itself part of RELX Group), the world’s leading event organizer. ReedPOP is devoted exclusively to organising and managing events, launching and acquiring new shows, and working with premium brands in the pop culture world to deliver once in a lifetime experiences for fans everywhere.
“For nearly a decade I’ve watched with great admiration as the MCM brand grew in size, scale and quality, as well as in the hearts and minds of UK fans. I could not be more proud and humbled to team up with the MCM team to bring two world-class pop culture event companies together,” said Lance Fensterman, Global Head of ReedPOP. “The addition of the MCM brand extends the reach and influence of the ReedPOP portfolio and further solidifies our place as the number one producer of fan events across the globe. We cannot wait to work with the MCM team to build even bigger and better events for fans in the UK.”
MCM was advised on the sale by Springboard partner Simon Ward and Assistant Director James Bailey. Simon commented “We are delighted to have delivered this deal for MCM. Bryan is an outstanding entrepreneur who has built a great business that rightly attracted interest from a number of global players. That MCM will now be part of the largest exhibition business in the world is an tremendous achievement.” Legal advice to MCM was provided by Caroline Kemsley-Pein of Kemsley and Co.
