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Top Track 100 research report 2017 1

Research report 2017Britain's 100 biggest private companies

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© 2017 Top Track 100 fasttrack.co.uk

Top Track 100 research report 2017 i

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 1 Top 10 companies on the league table 1

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2

KEY STATISTICS 3 Sales 3 Profits 3 Staff and job creation 3 Margins 4 Debt 4 Foundation dates 5 Regional breakdown 5 Sector breakdown 6 Industry breakdown 6 Main ownership 7 Ownership wealth 7 New entrants 8 Departures from last year's league table 9

CORPORATE ACTIVITY 10 Public-to-private takeovers 10 Ownership changes 10 Significant minority investments 10 Acquisitions 11 Mergers 11 Disposals 11 Possible flotations 12 Possible sale 12 Possible divisional sale 12

SIXTEEN YEARS OF TOP TRACK 100 13 Stock market flotations 13 Acquisitions and mergers 13 The first Top Track 100 14 Failures 14 Example Top Track 100 alumni 14 Trends over the 16 years of the Top Track 100 15 Sales & profits 15 Changes since first league table 15 Companies appearing every year since 2002 16

2017 TOP TRACK 100 LEAGUE TABLE 17

METHODOLOGY 21

SPONSORS & MEDIA PARTNER 24 Sponsors 24 Media partner 25

ABOUT FAST TRACK 26 Compiler & publisher 26 The authors 26 Fast Track 27

CONTACT DETAILS 27



INTRODUCTION

This is the 16th year of The Sunday Times Top Track 100, which ranks Britain’s biggest private companies by sales. HSBC is the title sponsor of the league table and Linklaters is the main sponsor.

The Top Track 100 is the only league table of its kind in Britain and similar to Forbes America's Largest Private Companies.

To qualify, companies must be unquoted, not subsidiaries, and registered in the UK, although their ultimate holding companies may be offshore.

This year, the league table companies have combined sales of £185bn, equivalent to 10% of UK GDP. Their profits (ebitda) are £19.4bn, although many of the companies have substantial debts. They employ 982,000 people, equivalent to 3% of the UK’s workforce.

Chemicals maker INEOS takes the top position for a third consecutive year. It is led by its founder, executive chairman and majority shareholder Jim Ratcliffe, who is turning the chemicals giant into a major force in North Sea oil and gas production and transportation. He is also positioning it to play a significant role in fracking for gas in the UK.

The figures above illustrate the dynamic contribution of the Top Track 100 companies to the British economy, and are outlined in more detail in the following pages.

Top 10 companies on the league table

* Supplied by the company

Jim Ratcliffe (right) founded chemicals manufacturer INEOS, which is No 1 for a third year running

1 1 INEOS Chemicals manufacturer UK/Switzerland Dec 16 *19,859 9.9% *2,541 17,000 Jim Ratcliffe (60%), John Reece (20%),

Andrew Currie (20%)

2 2 Greenergy Fuel supplier Central London Apr 16 13,672 -3.1% 53 637 Brookfield Business Partners (85%),

management (15%)

3 3 John Lewis Partnership Food & general retailer Central London Jan 17 *10,026 2.8% *874 88,000 Employees (100%)

4 4 Swire Conglomerate Central London Dec 16 *7,961 14.8% *1,583 80,820 Swire family (67%), others (33%)

5 5 P&H Wholesale distributor East Sussex Apr 16 4,435 -0.7% 21 4,473 Management & employees (59%), former

employees (41%)

6 72 Euro Garages (Intervias) Fuel forecourt operator Blackburn Dec 16 *3,817 367.9% *226 9,151 Issa family (50%), TDR (50%)

7 6 Arnold Clark Automobiles Car dealer Glasgow Dec 16 *3,662 9.2% *287 10,672 Clark family & trusts (100%)

8 8 Bestway Group Conglomerate West London Jun 16 *3,341 9.2% *558 26,710 Sir Anwar Pervez & family (89.5%),

management (10.5%)

9 7 2 Sisters Food Group Food producer Birmingham Jul 16 3,310 -0.3% 176 22,664 Baljinder & Ranjit Boparan (100%)

10 16 Pentland Group Brand manager and retailer Central London Dec 16 *2,913 20.9 *381 17,717 Rubin family (100%)

Rank2017

Rank2016

Sales£m

% annual sales

growthFYEHQ locationActivityCompany Ebitda

£m Staff Main shareholders



EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Key stats• The companies on the 16th annual Top Track 100 league table

had combined sales of £185bn, up 7% on the year before

• Almost three quarters (72) reported an increase in sales, some as a result of mergers and acquisitions

• 67 companies grew their profits year-on-year, 29 saw a drop in ebitda and four did not disclose their profits. Total profits were up 4% to £19.4bn, while ebitda margins remained level at 10%

• The companies employ a total of 982,000 people, 29,000 more than a year earlier

• The companies on the first Top Track 100, published in 2002, had combined sales of £72bn and employed 704,000 people

Debt• Total combined debt (including shareholder debts) among the 96

companies that disclosed figures is £90bn, resulting in an average debt multiple of five times ebitda. One sixth (15) of the companies have debt of more than £1bn, while 26 have debt of more than five times ebitda

• Of the 10 companies with the highest profits at ebitda level, six have debt of more than £3bn and pay out a large proportion of their profits in interest. Five of the six are owned by private equity

Sectors & industries• Five of the nine new entrants on the table operate in the services

industry, with two in wholesale, and the two remaining companies operating in retail and construction

• Retail is the sector that has grown the fastest, adding 12.5% to its total sales to reach £49.4bn

• Manufacturing grew 9% to combined sales of £35.5bn

Ownership & corporate activity • One third of the companies (32) are majority-owned by private

equity, and private equity firms own minority stakes in an additional three companies

• Of the companies that left the table, one floated, three were sold and one was absorbed into a joint venture

Levels of sales

Number of companies in each range of sales in their latest financial year (2015-2017)

20

>£5bn

£2bn–£5bn

£1.5bn–£2bn

£1bn–£1.5bn

£750m–£1bn

£630m–£750m

10

27

19

20

4

Levels of ebitda

Number of companies in each range of ebitda profit/loss in their latest financial year (2015-2017)

>£250m

£100m–£250m

£50m–£99m

£0m–£49m

<0

Not disclosed

1

4

32

23

18

22

Number of employeesNumber of companies in each range

20

18

>50,000

25,000-50,000

10,000-25,000

5,000-10,000

2,500-5,000

1,000-2,500

<1,000

26

17

3

5

11



KEY STATISTICS

SalesSales for the Top Track 100 range from £19.9bn for INEOS to £632m for Expro International, with an average of £1.8bn and a median of £1.1bn.

Average sales per employee is £188,000.

ProfitsProfits are measured as earnings before tax, depreciation, amortisation (ebitda) and any exceptionals.

All but one of the 96 companies on the league table that disclosed ebitda are positive (four chose not to disclose figures).

Profits are up 5% on the previous year and range from £2.5bn (INEOS) to a loss of £32m (Laing O’Rourke).

The average profit is £193m, the median £65m, and the average profit per employee reached £20,000.

The company with the biggest increase in profits was Dyson (No 15), which increased profits £180m, from £451m to £631m. Two companies, ISG and Sir Robert McAlpine turned last year’s losses into profits this year.

The biggest drop in absolute profits was suffered by INEOS (No 1), where ebitda fell by £153m, from £2.7bn to £2.5bn.

Staff & job creationThe total number of people employed by the league table companies is 982,000, up from 953,000 the year before. The average is 9,800 staff members and the median is 4,500.

The largest employer is John Lewis (No 3) with 88,000 on the payroll and Rontec the smallest with 128.

Biggest percentage sales rises

Rank Company Activity

Sales increase

6 Intervias (Euro Garages)Fuel forecourt operator 367.9%

67 First UtilityBundled utility supplier 50.8%

15 DysonAppliance manufacturer 43.3%

19 Marshall GroupConglomerate 42.5%

75 Nando'sRestaurant operator 35.1%

Biggest percentage sales fall


Sales decrease

100 Expro InternationalOilfield services provider -28.1%

97 FircroftTechnical recruiter -21.1%

23 European Metal RecyclingMetal recycler -19.9%

37 Stemcor Global HoldingsSteel trader -18.9%

16 Laing O'RourkeEngineering & construction -18.4%

Biggest profits (ebitda)

RankCompany Activity

Profits £m

1 INEOSChemicals manufacturer *2,541

11 Heathrow Airport 1,683

4 Swire Conglomerate *1,583

22 Thames Water (Kemble) Water services provider 1,122

3 John Lewis Partnership Food & general retailer 874

* Supplied by the company



MarginsAverage profit margin for the 96 companies for which figures are available is 10%.

Fifty-five companies increased their margins in the past year, while 41 saw a fall in their margins.

Four of the companies with the top-six highest margins are water companies. The other two are airport operators.

DebtA number of the companies on the table have complex group structures and 30 have their holding companies overseas; clarity on their levels of debt is therefore not always readily available.

The figures provided below are mainly based on accounts available at Companies House and do not provide the full picture.

The combined debt of the companies is at least £91bn. They range from Heathrow (No 11) with debts of £14.3bn - a legacy of its privatisation in 2006 by investors including Spain’s Ferrovial - to companies with no debts, of which there are four: Bet365 (No 30), Radius Payment Solutions (No 35), Wilko (No 36) and The Range (No 79).


Profit margin

74 Southern Water Water services provider 64.6%

11 Heathrow Airport 59.9%

22 Thames WaterWater services provider 56.8%

52 Yorkshire Water (Kelda) Water services provider 55.0%

85 Gatwick Airport 51.5%

48 Anglian Water Group Water services provider 51.2%

65 ArqivaCommunications services provider 48.0%

30 bet365 Online bookmaker 30.7%

69 Harrods Department store operator 30.0%

15 Dyson Appliance manufacturer 25.1%

Biggest absolute debt


Debt (£m)

11 Heathrow Airport 14,342

22 Thames Water (Kemble)Water services provider 11,802

48 Anglian Water Group Water services provider 7,944

52 Yorkshire Water (Kelda) Water services provider 6,006

100 Expro InternationalOilfield services provider 4,701

Top 10 biggest margins



Regional breakdown of UK HQs

Northeast & Yorkshire

Northwest

N. Ireland

Wales

Southwest

Scotland

East

Midlands

London

4

2

34224

12

2

1

16

Southeast

3

Foundation datesFourteen companies, including Swire (No 4) and Sir Robert McAlpine (No 67), trace their history back to the 19th century.

The oldest company, Doncasters Group (No 98) was founded in 1778 when Daniel Doncaster obtained the company’s first trademark.

The youngest companies are Rontec (No 55) and First Utility (No 68) which were established in their current form in 2011 and 2006 respectively.

Regional breakdownThe majority of companies on the league table are based in London (34) and the Southeast (22), including seven of the top ten companies on the league table.

The next most common location for companies on the league table is the Midlands, with 16 based there including JCB (No 17) in Staffordshire and Bet365 (No 30) in Stoke-on-Trent.

Outside London, the cities with the highest concentration of Top Track 100 companies are Reading and Liverpool, which are home to four companies each.

Foundation dates

Number of companies in each range

After 2000

1950-2000

Before 1950

Before 1900

Before 1800

15

11

59

1

14



Sector breakdown

Number of companies in each sector

Construction 11

Manufacturing 10

Wholesale 11

Retail 27

Services 41

Sector breakdownServices (41 companies) and retail (27) are the two largest sectors, making up two thirds of the league table between them. The biggest service companies are Swire (No 4) and Pentland Group (No 10), while John Lewis Partnership (No 3) and Arnold Clark Automobiles (No 7) are the biggest in retail.

In terms of the Top Track 100 sector breakdown, retail and manufacturing are the sectors with the highest sales growth since ast year, up 13% and 9% respectively.

The increase in retail is partly a result of Euro Garages’ merger with European Forecourt Retail to create Intervias, which added £3bn in sales; the increase in manufacturing is due to growth at car parts maker TI Automotive (No 13), which added 22% in sales to £2.7bn, and INEOS (No 1), which grew 10% to £19.9bn.

The sector with the biggest growth in profits was retail, where profits grew 13% since last year, from £3.4bn to £3.8bn. This was mainly a result of profit growth at Intervias (No 6) and Shop Direct (No 27).

Industry breakdownConsumer goods, food & drink and transport make up more than a third of the table with 41 companies. They include Dyson, the appliance manufacturer at No 15; Bakkavor, the fresh prepared foods producer at No 28; and Virgin Rail at No 51.

Three other industries are represented by a substantial number of companies: building-related with 9, engineering, business services and automotive with 7 companies each.

Only one finance company, Domestic & General (No 91), remains on the table after Worldpay floated in October 2015. Bibby Line Group (No 39) has a financial services arm, which accounts for 10% of its £1.5bn in sales.

Industry breakdown

Consumer goods 15

Food & drink 15

Transport 11

Building related 9

Engineering 7

Business services 7

Other 13

Automotive 7

Recruitment 6Leisure 6

Oil & gas 4



Main ownershipUntil 2016, the largest ownership type on the Top Track 100 was private equity. For the first time last year, founders and entrepreneurs owned more companies than private equity firms, and that continues this year, with 33 in this category of ownership. Private equity firms own 32, and hold minority stakes in a further three companies on the table.

Of the nine new entries to the table this year, two are owned by entrepreneurs. Nando’s (No 75) is owned by Dick Enthoven, a South African businessman; he did not set up the business but provided growth funding at an early stage and later bought out the founders. Argent Foods (No 95) was co-founded by chief executive David Gray, who owns 63% of the fruit importer and meat supplier.

Two other newcomers to the table, De Poel (No 78) and AT Kearney (No 99), are owned by their management and staff respectively. The remaining five new entries are owned by private equity firms.

Founding entrepreneurs still run or own stakes in 33 of companies on the table, such as Tom Morris’s value retailer Home Bargains (No 33) and Ray O’Rourke’s construction group Laing O’Rourke (No 16).

Family ownership is also an important factor on the table, with 26 of the companies owned by the founding family. These include Marshall Group (No 19), which is led by the fourth generation; and car dealer Arnold Clarke Automobiles (No 7) whose founder, Sir Arnold Clark, passed away in April, and which is now owned by his family.

Ownership wealthMany owners of companies on the league table are among the richest individuals in Britain, according to the 2017 Sunday Times Rich List. The combined wealth of the families and individuals that own stakes in the companies featured this year is £87bn.

Ownership types

Number of companies by majority ownership type

Family 26

Management & staff 9

Entrepreneur &/or founder 33

Private equity 32

ShareholderRich List

rank*

Net worth (£m)*

Top Track 100 company Company rank

Sir James Dyson & family 14 7,800 Dyson 15

Sir David & Sir Frederick Barclay 15 7,200 Shop Direct 27

Jim Ratcliffe 18 5,750 INEOS 1

Coates family 22 5,000 Bet365 30

Sir Richard Branson & family 23 4,865 Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Rail Group 14, 51

Christo Wiese 24 4,620 Iceland & New Look 12, 38

Lord Bamford 35 3,300 JCB 17

Tom Morris, Joe Morris 39 3,090 Home Bargains 33

Sir Anwar Pervez, OBE HPK 40 2,950 Bestway Group 8

Sir Philip Green 41 2,787 Arcadia 24

* According to The Sunday Times Rich List, published 7 May 2017

The ten wealthiest individual shareholders*



New entrants on this year's league tableNine companies entered the league table that did not feature in 2016, two of which had appeared before.

The highest ranking new-comer is Finastra (No 31), which was formed in June by the merger of UK financial software provider Misys, and Canadian software specialist D+H.

Ranked at No 34 is ISG, a construction services group with sales of £1.6bn. It was delisted from the LSE last year. Nando’s (No 75) grew its sales 38% to reach an annualised £793m, having acquired a number of overseas franchisees.

Five of the new entrants operate in the services sector. They are Finastra (No 31), recruitment firm de Poel (No 78), care firm Four Seasons Health Care (No 92), consultancy AT Kearney (No 99) and oilfield expert Expro (No 100).

In addition to ISG (No 34), one other company joined the league table as a result of a stock market delisting: Brammer, the industrial parts distributor at No 87.

Rank 2017

Company Activity FYE Sales

£mProfit

£mPrevious sales £m Reason for entry

31 FinastraFinancial software provider May 17 *1,653 n/a 667 Misys merged with Canadian software firm D+H in

June to form Finastra

34 ISG Construction services Dec 16 †1,571 †24 1,649 Cathexis, a Texan investor, acquired and delisted the

company from the LSE in 2016 in a hostile takeover

75 Nando's Restaurant operator Feb 16 809 145 587

Sales grew 38% to £809m, following the acquisition of a number of overseas franchisees

78 de Poel Recruitment outsourcing specialist Dec 16 *775 *8 712 Sales grew 9% to £775m, which is above the £632m

required for inclusion

87 Brammer Industrial parts distributor Dec 15 717 39 724 US investor Advent International acquired and

delisted the company for £222m in November 2016

92 Four Seasons Health Care Healthcare provider Dec 16 *686 *55 688 Is reportedly returning to health after falling revenues

and high debts put its balance sheet under strain

95 Argent Foods Food supplier Dec 16 *672 *18 632

Sales grew 16% to £667m, which is above the £632m required for inclusion

99 AT Kearney Management consultancy Dec 15 648 31 602 Sales grew 8% to £648m, which is above the £632m

required for inclusion

100 Expro InternationalOilfield services provider Mar 16 632 141 879 Sales were high enough for inclusion

New entrants

ISG (No 34) makes it first appearance on the Top Track 100, having delisted from the LSE last year

* Supplied by the company † Annualised figure



Departures from last year's league tableMaking way for this year’s new entrants, nine companies lost their places on the Top Track 100.

One floated on the stock market, Biffa.

R&R Ice Cream merged with a division of Nestle, the consumer goods conglomerate, to form a joint venture.

Corporate activity brought about the departure of three companies. Formula One was sold last year, as were Dunbia and Odeon & UCI Cinemas.

The disposal of a division meant that Telereal Trilium’s sales dropped below the £632m required for inclusion this year. Care UK’s turnover fell 13% due to the disposal of three divisions in 2015 while NES Global Talent was hit by the drop in oil industry activity and sales fell 12%. Murphy Group's sales fell only 2%, but it was enough to see it drop below the No 100 company, whose sales were £632m.

Rank 2016

Company Activity FYE Sales

£m Reason for departure

58 Biffaintegrated waster manager Mar 16 928 Floated in London in October 2016 with a £450m market cap. Its current

market valuation is £490m

69 Dunbia Red meat processor Mar 16 788 Acquired by Ireland's Dawn Meats for undisclosed figure in May

71 Formula One Motor racing administrator Dec 15 927 Acquired by Liberty Media for £6.4 bn in September 2016

79 Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group Cinema operator Dec 15 747 Acquired in July 2016 for £921m by US chain AMC Group, which is owned by

Daian Wanda, a Chinese conglomerate

81 R&R Ice Cream Ice cream maker Dec 15 720 Merged in 1 October 2016 with a division of Nestle, forming a joint venture

84 Care UK Care services provider Sep 16 596 Disposed of three division in May and June 2015, which led to a 13% drop in

sales to £596m

84 Telereal Trillium Property investor and developer Mar 17 616 Sales dropped 6% from £658m to fall below this year's £632m threshold

97 NES Global Talent Engineering recruitment consultancy Oct 16 570 Sales dropped 12% mainly due to the fall in activity in the oil and gas sector

98 Murphy Group Civil engineering contractor Dec 16 614 Sales dropped 2% from a restated £629m to fall below £632m

The company ranked No 100 in this year’s table has sales of £632m

Race organiser Formula One left the Top Track 100 after 11 appearances having been acquired by US firm Liberty Media last year for £6.4bn

Departures



CORPORATE ACTIVITY

Public-to-private take-oversIt is five years since a company last joined the table due a delisting. In 2012, Morson (No 73) was taken private by its founders, following six years on the London Stock Exchange. This year, two companies joined the table as a result of a de-listing from the LSE.

• Construction services fim ISG (No 34) was taken private last year when US investor Cathexis succeeded with its £85m takeover and delisted the company

• Brammer, the industrial parts distributor, at No 87 was acquired by Advent International in a £222m deal in November, and delisted. Since then, Advent has acquired IPH, a French industrial supplies distributor, and aims to merge the two entities

Ownership changesTwo companies changed ownership in the past year:

• Canadian asset manager, Brookfield Business Partners, acquired an 85% stake in fuel supplier Greenergy (No 2) in February, for an undisclosed sum

• Matthew Sanders, the founder and owner of recruitment outsourcing specialist de Poel (No 78), sold the business in September to his management team, led by new CEO Andrew Preston. The deal was funded by Tosca Debt Capital

Significant minority investments• Private equity firm TDR acquired a minority stake in Euro Garages

(No 6) in October 2015. Last year, it merged with European Forecourt Retail, creating a new group, called Intervias. TDR and the founding Issa brothers each own 50% of the combined entity

• Australian investor Macquarie sold its 26% stake in Thames Water (No 22) in March to Canadian pension fund Omers and the Kuwait Investment Authority for an estimated £1.35bn

• London-based investor Arjun Infrastructure Partners acquired a 45% stake in Welcome Break (No 96) in May in a deal reportedly valuing the motorway services operator at £700m

Last year, Greenergy (No 2) sold an 85% stake to Brookfield Business Partners, a Canadian asset manager



Mergers, acquisitions and disposalsThe Top Track 100 companies have made a number of deals in the past year, selling divisions and acquiring new entities, despite Britain's current political and economic uncertainties. The companies are reshaping their structure, in order to meet the challenges of this year and beyond.

Acquisitions:A number of companies on this year's table have made large acquisitions in the past year, including:

• Chemicals and shale gas giant INEOS (No 1) moved into North Sea oil production earlier this year with two deals. It acquired BP's Forties Pipeline in April in a deal worth $250m, and Danish energy giant DONG’s oil and gas business for $1bn in May

• Euro Garages' holding company Intervias (No 6) agreed to buy 1,176 Esso Italiana service stations in June, almost doubling the number it operates, from the current 1,450. The deal size was undisclosed

• The holding company of 2 Sisters Food Group (No 9) acquired turkey producer Bernard Matthews in September for an undisclosed sum

• William Grant & Sons, the spirits distiller at No 66, acquired Tuthilltown Spirits in the US in April for an undisclosed sum; it already owned the Hudson Whiskey brand made at the same distillery, having bought it in 2010

Mergers:• Having cancelled the flotation of financial software specialist Misys

in October 2016, owners Vista Equity Partners merged it with Canadian payment technology firm D+H in June to form Finastra (No 31), a £1.7bn financial software giant

• Since its delisting Brammer (No 87), its private equity owner Advent International has acquired IPH, a French industrial supplies distributor, and intends to merge the two firms

Disposals:Several Top Track 100 companies have sold off divisions in the past year, including:

• Conglomerate Marshall Group (No 19) sold its corporate aviation centre in Birmingham to a division of The Rigby Group (No 20) in June for an undisclosed sum as part of a strategic review

• Keepmoat (No 50), the housebuilder, sold its regeneration arm to France's ENGIE Group for £330m in March

• Renewable energy developer RES (No 81) sold its Japanese subsidiary to Australian investor Macquarie Group in June for an undisclosed sum.

Euro Garages (No 6), founded by brothers Mohsin (above) and Zuber Issa, merged with a European operator to form a new holding company Intervias



Possible future exitsThe following companies on this year’s Top Track 100 have announced plans or intentions to sell, either through a flotation, a sale, or a partial sale.

Possible flotations:• Pret A Manger (No 77): The sandwich chain is reportedly

planning a £1.5bn IPO in New York later this year

• Vue International (No 79): AimCo and OMERS, the owners of the cinema chain, were reportedly considering a stock market flotation last year, expected to value the cinema chain at £1.7bn. The plans may be revived this year

Possible sale:• P&H (No 5): Sainsbury’s is reportedly considering buying the

wholesale distributor in response to Tesco’s £3.7bn takeover of Bookers announced in January

• Shop Direct (No 27): Owners Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay are selling all or part of their mail-order fashion retailer, with three private equity firms - Apax Partners, BC Partners and Hellman & Friedman - reportedly in the running

• Arqiva (No 65): Its owners – a consortium led by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Macquarie – put the mobile mast giant up for sale in May with an estimated price tag of £6bn

Possible divisional sale:• Laing O’Rourke (No 16): The construction group put its

Australian division up for sale in January last year but no buyers have been found so far

Arqiva (No 65), which provides the infrastructure for TV transmissions, including from Wimbledon, was officially put up for sale in May



SIXTEEN YEARS OF TOP TRACK 100

Top Track 100 was launched 16 years ago to track and recognise the success of the UK’s biggest private companies. Since its launch, 249 companies have appeared on the table, of which 24 have appeared every single year (see table page 16).

The trends over the 16 years are outlined on page 15.

Stock market flotationsAt least 30 companies have floated since featuring on the table but some of these were later delisted or merged with other businesses. There are currently 27 companies still listed on a stock exchange that previously featured on Top Track 100. They include:

• Cash and carry operator Booker is an example of a company that floated only to be delisted later. It first featured on the Top Track 100 in 2005 with sales of £3.4bn, floated in 2009 and currently has a market cap of £3.5bn.

• B&M Retail listed in June 2014 valued at £2.7bn, having featured in 2012 and 2013. It is now valued at £3.6bn

• Worldpay, the payment processor, featured three times between 2013 and 2015 before listing in October 2015 valued at £4.8bn. It is now valued at £6.2bn

• Housebuilder Crest Nicholson featured in 2008, before the financial crisis caused sales to fall. It staged a turnaround and floated in 2013, valued at £553m. Its current market cap is £1.5bn

• Biffa, the waste management company, floated in October last year at a market cap of £450m. It is now valued at £490m.

Acquisitions and mergersApproximately 50 Top Track 100 companies have been acquired including:

• Alliance Boots, the high street retailer and pharmaceuticals wholesaler, and Britain’s biggest private company from 2010 to 2014, was sold in two tranches to US drugstore chain Walgreens, in 2012 and 2015 respectively

• Snack maker United Biscuits was a stalwart of the table, featuring every year from 2002 until 2014, when it was acquired by Turkish biscuit maker Yildiz for £2bn

• Travelex, the foreign exchange operator, featured 11 times between 2002 and 2014, before being acquired by Bavaguthu Shetty, the owner of UAE Exchange for a reported £1bn. The deal completed in January 2015

2002

Total sales

£72bn £185bn

704,000 982,000

£4bn £19.9bn

Total staff

Top company sales

2017

Marshall Group (No 19) has featured every year since 2002 and this year entered the top 20 for the first time

How the Top Track 100 has changed



The first Top Track 100Companies that appeared in the first Top Track 100 table in 2002 include:

• Sir Michael Bishop’s BMI British Midland, with sales of £739m. He sold the airline to Lufthansa in 2009 for an undisclosed sum

• Caudwell Group, the mobile phone retailer, founded and run by John Caudwell featured with sales of £1.1bn. He sold a division of the company in 2003 for £405m, and the rest of the group - for a reported £1.46bn - in 2006 to two private equity firms.

• Mike Ashley’s Sports Soccer fetured with sales of £325m. It was later renamed Sports Direct and floated on the stock exchange in 2007. It is now valued at £1.7bn

Failures• Department store operator BHS featured between 2002

and 2009. It was sold by Arcadia to investment group Retail Acquisitions for £1 in 2015, before going into administration last year, with the closure of all 164 stores

• EMI, the music publisher, featured between 2008 and 2011. In 2012, it went into administration with a legal battle ensuing, between its owner Terra Firma and its adviser Citigroup

• DYI retailer Focus Wickes, first featured in 2002 at No 10 with sales of £1.5bn. Five years later it defaulted on its debts and was acquired for £1 by Cerberus, a US private equity firm

• MG Rover first featured in 2002 and produced more than 0.5m cars a year in the late 1990s, before it went into administration in 2005; it was later bought by China's Nanjing Automobile Group

Example Top Track 100 alumni

John Caudwell founded mobile phone retailer Caudwell Group, which appeared on the first Top Track 100 in 2002



Trends over the 16 years of the Top Track 100Over the last 16 years, the biggest private companies in the UK have made an increasingly important contribution to the nation’s economy

Sales & profits

• The combined sales for the companies on the first table was £72bn, 6% of gross domestic product. Combined sales are now £185bn, two and a half times as much, and equivalent to 10% of GDP

• Profits generated by the companies are not directly comparable over the period. Operating profits climbed from £2.9bn in 2002 to £7.7bn in 2007, after which our profit measure changed to ebitda. That was £13.6bn in 2008 rising to £19.4bn this year

• The increases were due in part to the entry of INEOS in 2003, whose profits account for 13% of the total profits of the Top Track 100 this year

• The fall in sales and staff from 2014 to 2015 was a result of Boots leaving the table when it was acquired by US chemist chain Walgreens. It had sales of £23.4bn and employed 77,000 people at the time

• The lower figure in 2016 was a result of the prior year’s No 7 Worldpay, which had sales of £3.4bn, leaving the table when it floated in October 2015

Changes since first league table

• John Lewis Partnership was ranked at No 1 on the first league table in 2002 with sales of £4bn. It is now ranked at No 3 with sales of £10bn

• This year’s No 100 has sales of £632m, which would have been enough to rank at No 37 in 2002, above Lucite International, a plastics maker. That year, the company ranked at No 100, was window maker Anglian Group with sales of £266m

• The wealthiest individual owner of Top Track 100 companies this year, according to the Sunday Times Rich List, was Sir James Dyson with £7.8bn. In 2002, it was Sir Philip Green, then the owner of BHS, with wealth estimated at £1.2bn

Total sales

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

Staff employed

£195bn

£202bn

£178bn

£173bn

1,005,000

1,010,000

921,000

957,000

£183bn

963,000

£175bn

1,011,000

£160bn

970,000

970,000

£161bn

£149bn

950,000

£118bn

871,000

£106bn

887,000

£97bn

930,000

£89bn

869,000

£80bn

750,000

£72bn

700,000

982,000

£185bn



Companies appearing every year since 2002Twenty four companies have featured every year, with all of them, bar one, owned by the founding families or their staff. The one private-equity owned company, steel business Stemcor Global Holdings (No 36) had been family-owned from 1951 until two years ago, when the company restructured following heavy losses, and Apollo Asset Management and others swapped the debt they held in the business for equity.

The list below includes companies that have changed over the past 16 years. Arcadia (No 23) was merged with BHS in 2009: it is included on the list on the basis that at least one of the two has appeared on the Top Track 100 in each of the past 16 years. In 2004, The Rigby Group merged its two entities, Specialist Computer Holdings and Specialist Computers International, both of which appeared on the table in 2002 and 2003.

Triumph Motorcycles is the best-known subsidiary of Bloor Investments (No 49), which has appeared all 16 years

Rank 2017

Rank 2002

Name Activity FYE Latest sales £m

Ownership

3 1 John Lewis Partnership Food and general retailer Jan 17 *10,026 Employees (100%)

4 4 Swire Conglomerate Dec 16 7,961 Swire family (67%), others (33%)

5 2 P&H Wholesale distributor Apr 16 *4,435 Management and employees (59%), former staff (41%)

7 24 Arnold Clark Automobiles Car dealer Dec 16 *3,662 Clark family and trusts (100%)

14 8 Virgin Atlantic Airline and tour operator Dec 16 2,690 Virgin Group (51%), Delta Air Lines (49%)

17 25 JCB Construction equipment maker Dec 15 2,343 Bamford family interests (100%)

19 47 Marshall Group Conglomerate Dec 16 *2,260 Sir Michael Marshall & Robert Marshall & family trusts

20 37 The Rigby Group Conglomerate Mar 17 *2,170 Sir Peter Rigby and family (100%)

23 83 European Metal Recycling Metal recycler Dec 15 2,020 Sheppard family (100%)

24 15 Arcadia Fashion retailer Aug 16 2,018 Lady Tina Green and family, Lloyds Banking Group

27 5 Shop Direct Fashion retailer Jun 16 †1,849 Sir David & Sir Frederick Barclay family settlements

29 20 Clarks Shoe retailer and wholesaler Jan 17 1,655 Clark family (84%), employees and institutions (16%)

36 28 Wilko Value retailer Feb 16 1,464 Wilkinson family (100%)

37 19 Stemcor Global Holdings Steel trader Dec 16 *1,459 Apollo Asset Management (19%), Others (81%)

40 58 Wates Construction contractor Dec 16 1,442 Wates family (100%)

44 55 AF Blakemore & Son Food distributor Apr 16 †1,282 Blakemore family (100%)

45 87 Arup Engineering consultancy Mar 16 1,240 Employees through trusts (100%)

49 70 Bloor Investments Builder and motorcycle maker Jun 16 1,150 John Bloor (100%)

51 49 Virgin Rail Train operator Mar 16 1,072 Virgin Group Holdings (51%), Stagecoach (49%)

58 71 OCS Group Facilities services provider Mar 16 974 Goodliffe family (100%)

61 65 River Island Fashion retailer Dec 15 933 Bernard Lewis and family (100%)

62 81 Bowmer & Kirkland Construction contractor Aug 16 931 Kirkland family and family trusts

67 34 Sir Robert McAlpine Construction contractor Oct 16 870 McAlpine family (100%)

82 9 Unipart Group Manufacturing, logistics & consultancy Dec 16 *748 Management & staff (52%), pension schemes & others (48%)

*Supplied by the company † Annualised figure




2017 TOP TRACK 100 LEAGUE TABLE

1 1 INEOSChemicals manufacturer Switzerland / UK Dec 16 *19,859 9.9 *2,541 17,000 Jim Ratcliffe (60%), John Reece (20%),

Andy Currie (20%)

2 2 GreenergyFuel supplier Central London Apr 16 13,672 -3.1 53 637 Brookfield Business Partners (85%),

management (15%)

3 3 John Lewis PartnershipFood & general retailer Central London Jan 17 *10,026 2.8 *874 88,000 Employees (100%)

4 4 SwireConglomerate Central London Dec 16 *7,961 14.8 *1,583 80,820 Swire family (67%), others (33%)

5 5 P&HWholesale distributor East Sussex Apr 16 4,435 -0.7 21 4,473 Management & employees (59%), former

employees (41%)

6 72 Euro Garages (Intervias)Fuel forecourt operator Blackburn Dec 16 *3,817 367.9 *226 9,151 Issa family (50%), TDR Capital (50%)

7 6 Arnold Clark AutomobilesCar dealer Glasgow Dec 16 *3,662 9.2 *287 10,672 Clark family & trusts (100%)

8 8 Bestway GroupConglomerate West London Jun 16 *3,341 9.2 *558 26,710 Sir Anwar Pervez & family (89.5%),

management (10.5%)

9 7 2 Sisters Food GroupFood producer Birmingham Jul 16 3,130 -0.3 176 22,664 Baljinder & Ranjit Boparan (100%)

10 16 Pentland GroupBrand manager and retailer Central London Dec 16 *2,913 20.9 *381 17,717 Rubin family (100%)

11 11 HeathrowAirport Heathrow Dec 16 2,809 1.6 1,683 6,553 Ferrovial (25%), Qatar Investment

Authority (20%), CDPG (13%), others (42%)

12 12 IcelandFrozen food retailer North Wales Mar 17 *2,792 4.4 *160 14,000 Brait (57%), Malcolm Walker &

management (43%)

13 17 TI AutomotiveCar parts maker Oxford/US Dec 16 *2,746 22.2 *373 23,702 Bain Capital, management

14 10 Virgin AtlanticAirline and tour operator Crawley Dec 16 2,690 -3.3 157 8,474 Virgin Group (51%), Delta Air Lines (49%)

15 24 DysonAppliance manufacturer Wiltshire Dec 16 *2,510 43.3 *631 8,500 Sir James Dyson & family (100%)

16 9 Laing O'RourkeEngineering & construction group Dartford Mar 16 2,354 -18.4 -32 15,234 Ray O’Rourke & Des O’Rourke through

Suffolk Partners Corporation (100%)

17 14 JCBConstruction machinery manufacturer Staffordshire Dec 15 2,343 -6.7 163 8,875 Bamford family interests (100%)

18 18 SpecsaversOptical & hearing aid retailer Guernsey Feb 17 *2,270 3.9 n/a 30,000 Perkins family & store co-owners

19 29 Marshall GroupConglomerate Cambridge Dec 16 *2,260 42.5 *63 6,059 Sir Michael Marshall, Robert Marshall &

family trusts (71%), others (29%)

20 27 The Rigby GroupConglomerate

Stratford-upon-Avon Mar 17 *2,170 21.4 *56 8,500 Sir Peter Rigby & family (100%)

21 22 MRH (GB)Fuel retailer & distributor Essex Oct 16 †2,075 16.1 †89 511 Lone Star Funds (100%)

22 19 Thames Water (Kemble)Water services provider Reading Mar 17 2,065 0.9 1,155 4,974 Consortium of investors, including OMERS

(18%), BT Pension scheme (13%), others

23 13 European Metal RecyclingMetal recycler Warrington Dec 15 2,020 -19.9 52 3,014 Sheppard family (100%)

24 15 ArcadiaFashion retailer Central London Aug 16 2,018 -17.3 280 25,966 Lady Tina Green & family, Lloyds Banking

Group

25 23 MaceConstruction project manager Central London Dec 16 *1,966 11.3 *18 5,067 Management (100%)

Rank2017

Rank2016

Sales£m

% annual sales






26 28 WestcoastElectronic product distributor Reading Dec 16 1,913 19.9 25 1,195 Joe Hemani (100%)

27 21 Shop DirectInternet retailer Liverpool Jun 16 †1,849 3.3 †237 3,866 Sir David Barclay & Sir Frederick Barclay

family settlements (100%)

28 25 BakkavorFresh prepared foods producer Central London Dec 16 †1,730 3.3 †144 18,945 Gudmundsson brothers & Baupost

Group (100%)

29 30 ClarksShoe retailer and wholesaler Somerset Jan 17 1,655 7.9 112 14,836 Clark family (84%), employees &

institutions (16%)

30 26 bet365Online bookmaker Stoke-on-Trent Mar 16 1,653 5.3 508 3,404 Coates family (93%), Will Roseff (7%)

31 FinastraFinancial software provider Central London May 17 *1,653 n/a n/a 10,000 Vista Equity Partners

32 36 Healthcare at HomeHome healthcare provider

Burton upon Trent Oct 16 1,638 14.9 11 1,897 Vitruvian Partners (majority), Hutton

Collins, management

33 33 Home BargainsValue retailer Liverpool Jun 16 1,603 8.9 174 15,853 Tom Morris & family (100%)

34 ISGConstruction services Central London Dec 16 †1,571 -4.7 †24 2,740 Cathexis (100%)

35 31 Radius Payment SolutionsFleet services provider Crewe Mar 16 1,475 -3.9 50 687 Bill Holmes (54%), Roy Sciortino (14%),

others (32%)

36 34 WilkoValue retailer Nottinghamshire Jan 16 1,464 1.4 57 20,830 Wilkinson family (100%)

37 20 Stemcor Global HoldingsSteel trader Central London Dec 16 *1,459 -18.9 n/a 587 Apollo Asset Management (19%), Others

(81%)

38 32 New LookFashion retailer Central London Mar 17 *1,455 -2.4 *138 18,493 Brait (ca. 80%), Tom Singh & other

management (ca. 20%)

39 35 Bibby Line GroupConglomerate Liverpool Dec 15 1,450 -15.4 62 6,224 Sir Michael Bibby & family (89%),

management & others (11%)

40 41 WatesConstruction contractor Surrey Dec 16 1,442 19.5 27 3,927 Wates family (100%)

41 37 Mott MacDonaldManagement & engineering group Croydon Dec 16 *1,407 0.4 *86 15,004 Employees (92%), trust (8%)

42 38 Willmott DixonConstruction contractor Hertfordshire Dec 15 1,324 5.2 13 3,302 Family & management (100%)

43 42 LycamobilePrepaid mobile telecoms provider Central London Feb 17 *1,300 8.3 n/a 5,800 Subaskaran Allirajah (98%), others (2%)

44 39 AF Blakemore & SonFood distributor West Midlands Apr 16 †1,282 0.4 †18 7,514 Blakemore family (100%)

45 45 ArupDesign & engineering consultancy Central London Mar 16 1,240 10.2 147 12,806 Employees through trusts (100%)

46 48 ListersCar dealer

Stratford-upon-Avon Mar 17 *1,227 12.9 *24 2,245 Bradshaw family (50%), Lister family (50%)

47 43 JCT600Drilling contractor Bradford Dec 16 *1,226 7.1 *28 2,200 Jack Tordoff (100%)

48 40 Anglian Water GroupWater services provider Cambridgeshire Mar 16 1,218 -4.3 623 4,526 CPPIB (33%), CFSGAM (32%), IFM

Investors (20%), 3i (15%)

49 53 Bloor InvestmentsBuilder & motorcycle maker Derbyshire Jun 16 1,150 17.1 150 3,228 John Bloor (100%)

50 44 KeepmoatHouse builder Doncaster Mar 17 *1,104 -2.6 *68 3,222 TDR Capital & Sun Capital (85%),

management (15%)

Rank2017

Rank2016

Sales£m

% annual sales







51 51 Virgin RailTrain operator Central London Mar 16 1,072 5.1 66 3,179 Virgin Group Holdings (51%), Stagecoach

(49%)

52 46 Yorkshire Water (Kelda)Water services provider Bradford Mar 16 1,063 -2.9 585 3,340 Consortium comprising Citigroup, GIC,

RREEF Infrastructure & Infracapital

53 49 MatalanValue retailer Liverpool Feb 17 *1,037 -2.3 *77 14,145 Hargreaves family (100%)

54 60 Greenhous GroupCar dealer Shrewsbury Dec 16 1,013 14.0 6 1,020 Derek Passant (52%), Kerry Finnon (46%),

Mike Pawson (2%)

55 52 RontecRoadside retailer Watford Sep 16 999 17.4 31 128 Ronson Family Trusts / Charitable

Foundation (100%)

56 54 Bourne LeisureCaravan park operator Hertfordshire Dec 16 *997 4.7 *236 13,640 Peter Harris, families of the late John

Cook & David Allen, management

57 57 Reed Specialist RecruitmentRecruiter Central London Jun 16 992 6.5 12 2,218 Reed family (100%)

58 59 OCS GroupFacilities services provider Gatwick Mar 16 974 5.2 24 80,757 Goodliffe family (100%)

59 73 W&R BarnettConglomerate Belfast Jul 16 946 16.1 55 1,140 Robert Barnett & family (100%)

60 47 KCA DEUTAG GroupDrilling contractor Aberdeen Dec 16 936 -14.4 197 6,532 Pamplona Capital, other investment

funds, management

61 50 River IslandFashion retailer West London Dec 15 933 0.1 177 12,030 Bernard Lewis & family (100%)

62 63 Bowmer & KirklandConstruction contractor Derbyshire Aug 16 931 9.7 58 1,337 Kirkland family & family trusts

63 75 Alexander Mann SolutionsRecruitment consultancy Central London Dec 16 *921 14.7 *35 3,400 New Mountain Capital (73%),

management (27%)

64 61 Samworth BrothersFood producer Leicestershire Dec 15 †910 6.1 †85 7,927 Samworth family trusts (100%)

65 62 ArqivaCommunications services provider Central London Jun 16 885 3.2 425 2,170 Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

(48%), Macquarie (25%), other investors

66 56 William Grant & SonsSpirits distiller Banffshire Dec 15 883 6.0 187 1,904 Grant & Gordon families

67 74 Sir Robert McAlpineConstruction contractor Hertfordshire Oct 16 870 8.7 8 2,199 McAlpine family (100%)

68 64 First UtilityBundled utility supplier Warwick Dec 15 848 50.8 6 950 Co-founders (45%), investors, incl. Royal

Dutch Shell (45%), staff share options

69 70 Harrods GroupDepartment store operator Central London Jan 16 840 2.2 252 4,475 Qatar Holding (100%)

70 95 Cordant GroupManpower services provider West London Jun 16 †*829 27.7 †*9 37,228 Ullmann family (98%), employee benefit

trust (2%)

71 68 Monarch HoldingsAirline & tour operator Luton Airport Oct 15 828 -16.4 73 2,557 Greybull Capital (90%), Pension

Protection Fund (10%)

72 65 Lamex Food GroupFood importer and exporter Hertfordshire Mar 16 825 -1.8 20 380 Steve Anderson (24%), Phil Wallace &

family trusts (24%), Colin Dicker & family

73 77 MorsonEngineering recruitment consultancy Manchester Dec 16 *806 4.5 *25 1,410 Ged Mason & family (85%), Paul Gilmour

(7.5%), Kevin Gorton (7.5%)

74 67 Southern WaterWater services provider West Sussex Mar 16 804 -2.7 519 2,119 JP Morgan (31%), UBS Global (22%),

Hermes (21%), others (26%)

75 Nando'sRestaurant operator

Southwest London Feb 16 †793 35.1 †142 16,101 Dick Enthoven & family (100%)

Rank2017

Rank2016

Sales£m

% annual sales







76 78 MotoMotorway services operator Bedfordshire Dec 16 779 2.5 103 5,118 Universities Superannuation Scheme

(60%), CVC (40%)

77 85 Pret A MangerSandwich shop operator Central London Dec 16 776 14.6 93 10,426 Bridgepoint (69%), founders &

management (31%)

78 de PoelRecruitment outsourcing specialist Knutsford Dec 16 *775 8.9 *8 138 Management (100%)

79 82 Vue InternationalCinema operator West London Nov 16 773 9.3 134 9,453 Canadian pension funds AIMCo & OMERS

(74.2%), management (25.8%)

80 90 The RangeValue retailer Plymouth Jan 17 *761 15.0 *88 9,501 Chris Dawson & family (100%)

81 55 RESRenewable energy developer Hertfordshire Oct 16 759 -17.2 52 1,396 McAlpine Trusts (100%)

82 80 Unipart GroupManufacturing, logistics & consultancy Oxford Dec 16 *748 3.5 *27 6,192 Management & staff (52%), pension

schemes & others (48%)

83 100 Langley HoldingsEngineering equipment maker Nottinghamshire Dec 16 738 16.3 112 4,201 Tony Langley (100%)

84 93 WSHHospitality services provider Reading Dec 16 *732 14.6 *62 14,442 Alastair Storey & family (80%),

Intermediate Capital (12%), management

85 86 GatwickAirport Gatwick Mar 17 *725 7.7 *374 2,871 Global Infrastructure Partners (42%), Future Fund Board of Guardians

(17%), The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (16%), others (25%)

86 83 CamelotLottery operator Watford Mar 16 720 2.9 98 843 Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (100%)

87 BrammerIndustrial parts distributor Manchester Dec 15 717 -0.9 39 3,862 Advent International, management

88 89 The John Clark Motor GroupCar dealer Aberdeen Dec 16 *703 5.3 *13 1,190 John Clark & family (100%)

89 91 Henderson GroupFood wholesaler & retailer County Antrim Dec 16 699 6.1 35 2,998 Geoffrey Agnew (12%), Martin Agnew

(12%), Ardbarron Trust (76%)

90 76 FarmfoodsFrozen food retailer

Birmingham / Glasgow Dec 15 694 -12.8 28 4,320 Eric Herd & family (100%)

91 88 Domestic & GeneralWarranty provider Wimbledon Mar 16 *690 3.2 *91 2,784 CVC Capital Partners (>50%),

management (<50%)

92 Four Seasons Health CareHealthcare provider Cheshire Dec 16 *686 -0.3 *55 28,174 Terra Firma (100%)

93 87 Dhamecha FoodsCash and carry wholesaler Wembley Mar 16 684 2.2 17 531 Dhamecha family (100%)

94 94 TrailfindersTravel organiser West London Feb 16 682 5.8 22 1,057 Mike Gooley (100%)

95 Argent FoodsFood supplier Central London Dec 16 *672 6.4 *18 1,485 David Gray (63%), management (37%)

96 96 Welcome BreakMotorway services operator Milton Keynes Jan 17 †*664 2.4 †*62 4,971 NIBC European Infrastructure Fund

(55%), Arjun Infrastructure Partners (45%)

97 66 FircroftTechnical recruitment consultancy Warrington Aug 16 656 -21.1 10 571 Johnson family & management (66%),

Equistone Partners (34%)

98 99 Doncasters GroupEngineering components maker

Burton upon Trent Dec 16 *654 2.6 *101 4,207 Dubai International Capital (98%),

management (2%)

99 AT KearneyManagement consultancy Central London Dec 15 648 7.6 31 3,456 Employees (100%)

100 Expro InternationalOilfield services provider Reading Mar 16 632 -28.1 141 4,796 Goldman Sachs, Highbridge, KKR & Park

Square (70%), Management (30%)

Rank2017

Rank2016

Sales£m

% annual sales






METHODOLOGY

Qualification criteriaSales are taken as turnover as reported in companies' latest accounts or more up-to-date figures as provided directly to Fast Track by a chief financial officer, finance director or other company representative. Sales are given net of VAT, and shares from joint ventures and associate companies are excluded. Sales from discontinued operations are included where the company prepares accounts under GAAP but excluded if it prepares accounts under IFRS. Bookmakers, betting and gaming companies are ranked by net revenue (amounts wagered less winnings paid out) rather than gross amounts wagered or, in the case of Camelot, ticket sales. Fuel duty is included in turnover, in line with common industry practice among oil companies. The revenues of recruiters and travel agents represent a combination of gross fees, commission and monies handled on behalf of clients. Exchange rates are as quoted in the accounts or the average for the financial year. For financial years with fewer or more than 52 weeks, the figures are annualised on a simple pro-rata basis.

Profits: Companies are not required to be in profit. Profits are defined as earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda). Exceptional items, joint ventures and impairment of assets were excluded.

Data collection: Companies were identified by researching accounts filed at Companies House, as well as financial data provided by Bureau van Dijk's Fame database. Where companies were willing to provide them, Fast Track also reviewed more up-to-date draft accounts, management account extracts, pro-forma accounts and accounts filed in overseas territories or available on the companies’ websites. The table is based on historic information, with the latest available accounts ranging from December 2015 to April 2017. Corporate structure: Companies have to be unquoted, registered in the UK and not subsidiaries. They may have their ultimate holding company offshore, as is the case for more than 30 of the companies.

Exclusions: Cooperative societies were excluded, as were mutual societies such as Nationwide Building Society, provident associations such as Bupa, member-owned buying groups such as Nisa, and partnerships such as lawyers, accountants and management consultants. Companies that are majority owned by, or equal joint ventures between, quoted companies are excluded. Companies with fewer than 100 staff are also excluded.

Incomplete data: Private company information can be incomplete and, while every effort is made to include all qualifying companies, as well as up-to-date financial information, there may be omissions. Nominations for next year’s league table are welcome. Some exceptions were made to the qualification criteria set out above. The compiler’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.



Other assessmentsMain ownership: For the purposes of this report, companies were classed as being “owned” by private equity firms where these held more than 50% of the business and “backed” by private equity where they held 20% to 50%. If the founding entrepreneur retained control of the company, it was categorised as an entrepreneur-owned company. This category also includes companies such as Arcadia, which are owned, although not founded, by an entrepreneur. The family category was used for companies still under the control of the family of a deceased or retired founder. The management and employee category was used for companies where a majority of the company is owned by management or employees.

Research approachThe main research was conducted by Fast Track between April and June 2017.

The top 100 companies are ranked by sales from either their latest audited accounts or on latest figures provided by the companies.

Forty companies provided figures that were not publicly available by 20 June 2017.



Sales rankingTop Track 100 ranks the UK's 100 privately-owned companies by latest sales, as opposed to other criteria, because:

• Other publications such as Forbes and Fortune have compiled similar league tables in the US based on sales

• Sales are a relatively simple measure. They are easy to understand and usually unambiguous

• Sales are a reasonable indication of size, even if they may not completely reflect the performance of companies

However, a limitation of ranking companies by sales is that they are biased towards 'volume' businesses such as wholesalers and retailers.

Alternative rankingsOther measures by which to rank companies were evaluated but had a number of limitations, including:

Gross profits: not easily understood and calculated in different ways according to companies’ treatment of cost of sales and related costs.

Operating profits or ebitda: are reported more consistently across companies than gross profit but are volatile from year-to-year. A league table based on operating profits would exclude many large companies that operate with low margins.

Pre-tax profits: unquoted companies are likely to keep pre-tax profits to a minimum to reduce tax liabilities.

Staff: a limited indicator of company size, and distorts toward labour-intensive sectors, such as retail and services.



Linklaters is a main sponsor of Top Track 100 for a fourth year.

Linklaters LLP specialises in advising the world's leading companies and their owners, financial institutions and governments on their most challenging transactions and assignments. The firm is a recognised market leader for delivering outstanding service to clients throughout the world on takeovers, mergers and acquisitions, equity and debt capital markets transactions, joint ventures, disposals and other corporate advisory matters.

HSBC is the title sponsor of Top Track 100 for a fourth year.

Founded in 1865 to finance trade between Asia and the West, today HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations serving more than 37 million customers worldwide. Our aim is to be acknowledged as the world’s leading international bank.

In the UK, we support over 1 million businesses from small enterprises focused primarily on the domestic market through to global corporates. Whether it is working capital, term loans, trade finance or payments and cash management solutions, we provide the tools and expertise that businesses need to thrive.

John LanePartner & global co-head of equities

Dan HowlettHead of large corporates, UK

SPONSORS & MEDIA PARTNER

Fast Track would particularly like to thank the title sponsor of Top Track 100, HSBC, for sponsoring the league table for the fourth year; and our main sponsor Linklaters, which is also sponsoring the table for a fourth year.

The sponsors do not endorse, guarantee or recommend investment in any of the companies.

Sponsors

business.hsbc.uk @HSBCUKBusiness

linklaters.com @LinklatersLLP



Media partner

Iain DeyBusiness editor

The Sunday Times has published the Top Track 100 for all 16 years.

The Sunday Times has been Fast Track's media partner for all 20 years. It is Britain’s No 1 newspaper for business, and the leading broadsheet newspaper attracting over three million readers every week. More than half (54%) of the business elite read The Sunday Times, a greater market share than any other publication, according to the latest Ipsos survey.

thesundaytimes.co.uk @ST_Business



ABOUT FAST TRACK

Compiler & publisherHamish Stevenson owns and runs Fast Track, which he founded in 1997 after securing cornerstone sponsorship from Richard Branson.

He works closely with leading entrepreneurs, sponsors and media partners to try to ensure their expectations are exceeded and that they remain engaged with the alumni network.

He is an associate fellow at Green Templeton College, Oxford University, where he completed his masters and doctorate in management studies and subsequently set up and held the Virgin research fellowship in entrepreneurship.

The authorsRichard Tyler leads Fast Track’s research and editorial, working closely with sponsors and companies within our network.

He was the enterprise editor of The Daily and Sunday Telegraph for nine years, covering private companies and government policy towards business. He trained in journalism at Euromoney, part of The Daily Mail & General Trust, after completing his degree at Manchester University.

Eva Gronbech is responsible for identifying and researching companies and was previously head of research at Fast Track. Prior to joining the company in 1999, she worked for companies such as Kuwait Petroleum and Maersk Line. She has a masters in politics from Oxford University and a degree in business from Copenhagen Business School.

Research support was provided by Fast Track researchers Michael Cook, Dan Robinson and freelancer Suzie Pilkington.



Fast TrackTop Track 100 is compiled by Fast Track, the UK's leading face-to-face networking events and research company, which ranks top-performing private companies and entrepreneurs.

Fast Track has compiled league tables on private companies in partnership with The Sunday Times for the last 20 years. It publishes six other annual league table awards programmes:

SME Export Track 100 ranks Britain's SMEs with the fastest-growing international sales (total sales less than £25m)

Tech Track 100 ranks Britain's private TMT companies with the fastest-growing sales

Fast Track 100 ranks Britain’s private companies with the fastest-growing sales (excluding tech companies)

Profit Track 100 ranks Britain's private companies with the fastest-growing profits

Top Track 250 ranks Britain’s leading mid-market private growth companies with the biggest sales (£115m to £630m, and minimum 5% growth in sales or profits)

Top Track 100 ranks Britain’s private companies with the biggest sales (£630m to £20bn)

Fast Track is based in Oxford with 24 staff, and a network of freelance researchers.

20th anniversary

CONTACT DETAILS

Fast Track Angel Court 81 St Clements Street Oxford OX4 1AW

Tel: 01865 297100

Email: [email protected]

Web: fasttrack.co.uk

@ST_FastTrack

The Sunday Times Fast Track

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