The Gowling WLG corporate team has advised on the sale of the majority stake in JD Classics to the pan-European mid-market private equity firm Charme III.

The firm advised Derek Hood, founder of premium car restoration business JD Classics, on the transaction. Derek will retain a significant stake and will partner with Charme and the co-investors.

Founded in the 1980s, Derek Hood built JD Classics into the pre-eminent specialist in retail, restoring, racing and exporting premium classic road and race cars worldwide. The business has deep expertise in Jaguar, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Mercedes, and Maserati, among others. Today, the company has a purpose-built engineering and sales complex in Maldon and a showroom in Mayfair, London.

The Gowling WLG team consisted of corporate partners Stuart Young and David Vaughan, assisted by senior associate Stephen Bowman and associate Charlotte Pitt, tax partner Michael Murphy, partner and head of the banking and finance team Kirsty Barnes and senior property associate Caroline Frost. A broad team of other specialists provided additional support.

Derek Hood, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of JD Classics, said: "This is an exciting development for JD Classics and I am delighted to be partnering with Charme Capital Partners. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the team at Gowling WLG for their invaluable advice, guidance and hard work throughout the transaction."

As part of the transaction, Charme and co-investors will invest significant capital in the company to maintain the best service offering for JD Classics' valued customers; this will enable an international retail footprint, additional team hires and continued access to unique classic cars. Specifically, Charme and JD Classics have already identified a number of compelling opportunities to accelerate the company's international growth in the large, liquid market for classic cars across the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, including potential acquisitions.

Senior associate, Stephen Bowman, said: "We were delighted to have advised Derek on this transaction. This is the next stage of JD Classics' brand evolution and it's great to be part of that. We look forward to seeing JD Classics grow and expand its international customer base."

Gowling WLG's 60-strong Corporate team has extensive experience across the full spectrum of corporate advice, including equity capital markets on the AIM and Full List, investment funds, private equity and both public and private mergers & acquisitions.

The firm's 25-strong Automotive industry group brings together technical excellence in regulatory, corporate, employment, dispute resolution, real estate, commercial and competition.