US private equity business Atlas also made tentative enquiry about Mace Construct last summer

The private equity firm that owns Bovis has made an offer to buy bricks and materials distributor Brickability.

Atlas made its approach last month and followed up with an offer two weeks ago with Brickability, which rebranded to BRCK last month, rebuffing the 65p a share offer six days later saying it “fundamentally undervalued” the business.

In a statement to the City this morning. the firm, which listed on AIM in September 2019, added: “The Board has agreed to provide some limited further information to Atlas to establish whether it is prepared to improve its Indicative Offer Price.”

brickability

Brickability listed on the AIM index of the London Stock Exchange more than six years ago

It added: “The Board has indicated to Atlas that, in order to avoid unnecessary distraction of management and costs, the entry into a detailed due diligence process with Atlas would be subject to Atlas putting forward a proposal on terms that the Board would be minded to recommend to shareholders.”

Atlas has been apporached for comment.

The US firm is fast becoming an active investor in the UK construction market and Building understands the firm was one of several to look at Mace’s construction arm when news broke last summer the business was selling its consulting arm to Goldman Sachs.

It is believed the firm approached Mace about selling Construct last summer along with several other PE firms. An initial discussion came to nothing, Building understands.  

The firm also owns Permasteelisa and has been rejigging its senior management there in recent months.

Building understands the firm has been looking for a chief executive for several months, having announced last autumn that former CEO Liam Cummins was moving into a deputy chairman role while chief operating officer Lee Marks had left along with its group chief people officer Natalie Lion.

Marks joined Skanska earlier this month where he is in charge of the firm’s building business.

Last month, Building revelead that former Mace construction boss Gareth Lewis joined Atlas in an advisory role at the start of the year with his brief, which runs to a few days a month, covering potential future acquisitions and advising on the US firm’s current portfolio of businesses in the UK.

In its last set of results, BRCK, which is led by Frank Hanna, the former joint chief executive of brick firm Michelmersh, saw revenue rise 7% to £637m in the year to March 2025 but pre-tax profit fell 45% to £12m.