ARCO acquired by HIG CAPITAL

An affiliate of H.I.G. Capital completed the acquisition of Arco, the Hull-based distributor of safety equipment and provider of safety services, on 30 September 2026, taking over a business that the Martin family had run since 1907. The family, which had received unsolicited approaches for many years, chose H.I.G. as the partner for the company's next phase. At the time of the deal, Arco generated revenue of and employed more than 1,200 people, serving customers from its 600,000 sq ft National Distribution Centre in Hull and a network of safety centres and stores, while its Arco Professional Safety Services team handled training and consultancy on hazardous work such as working at height, confined spaces and respiratory protection. Guy Bruce, chief executive since 2022, stayed at the head of the company and said the previous three and a half years had been spent building a platform able to support significant growth. The new board was chaired by Meine Oldersma, previously a non-executive director of Arco, and Adam Taylor, a managing director in H.I.G.'s London office, worked on the deal. H.I.G. planned to fund a wider range of Arco's own-brand products, a broader offer of specialist safety training and services, investment in the digital proposition and acquisitions of complementary businesses, with the ambition of taking Arco beyond the UK into Europe and North America.