Leeds-based Spice today said it had offloaded its loss-making gas division, which included the Apollo contracting business originally set up by heating engineer and entrepreneur Shaun Maclean.
Maclean’s new plumbing and heating business Booth Mechanical Services has bought the boiler maintenance business for “nil consideration”, according to a Spice statement.
Maclean, who started out as a heating engineer at the age of 16, rose to prominence in 1996 when he founded Manchester-based Apollo Heating.
After running the business for 10 years he sold it to the Yorkshire ourtsourcing specialist Spice.
At the time as part of the deal he joined Spice as group managing director until he left last Spring, only to return to the industry shortly after as boss of Booth.
He said: “The construction industry and its associated disciplines have not had an easy time over the past year but I see Booth’s as an excellent local company, and I would like to see BMS at the forefront of Merseyside’s plumbing and heating business again, over the next few years.”
Spice chief executive Martin Towers said the boiler maintenance division had been sold for a nothing after running up a loss last year of £6.4m from turnover of £34.3m.
Towers said: “During the past two years, the gas business has been a material distraction for the group and a drain on resources. Today’s announcement draws a line under these issues.”