43 Open + Direct Insurance

43. OPEN + DIRECT INSURANCE

1 REGENT STREET

NEWTOWNARDS

CO DOWN

N IRELAND BT23 4AB

TEL: 028 9182 4581

FAX 028 9182 4548

WEBSITE: WWW.OPENANDDIRECT.COM + WWW.OPENANDDIRECT.COM

FEE AND COMMISSION INCOME (2004): £16.79m

PRE-TAX PROFIT: £5.3m

NUMBER OF UK BRANCHES: FOOTMAN JAMES - 1; OPEN + DIRECT - 6

NUMBER OF UK EMPLOYEES: 250

CHIEF OFFICER: GARETH BRADY, MANAGING DIRECTOR

YEAR ESTABLISHED: 2000

HISTORY

Open + Direct Insurance is a fast-growing niche insurance intermediary.

It has experienced particular success following a management buy-out in May 2002, backed by Alchemy Partners.

Open + Direct Insurance consists of two separate operations, Footman James and Open + Direct. Footman James is recognised as a market leader in a number of specialist vehicle sectors in the UK, including classic cars and motorcycles. Open + Direct Insurance is one of the leading personal lines insurance brokers in Northern Ireland. It also provides a wide range of commercial lines products to the SME sector.

MAJOR SHAREHOLDERS

Alchemy Partners, management team.

MAIN LINES OF BUSINESS

Footman James - specialist vehicle personal lines and commercial lines broker.

Open + Direct insurance - general personal lines and commercial lines broker

SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES

Footman James, Open + Direct Insurance.

CHIEF OFFICER BIOGRAPHY

Gareth Brady, a chartered accountant, originally trained with Ernst & Young, gaining experience in corporate finance. In 2000 he joined Open + Direct to manage the group's acquisition programme.

He then successfully managed the integration of the acquired Northern Ireland businesses under the Open + Direct brand name. In 2001 Brady became joint managing director of Open + Direct Insurance. He was instrumental in securing private equity funding for the management buy-out of Open + Direct in May of that year.