South Coast business acquired by recruitment investor partner in second deal of the year
Meraki Capital has completed its second transaction of 2026 with the acquisition of SERT - a recruitment and training provider serving the utilities, renewables and facilities management sectors.
The deal brings South Coast-based SERT (Fareham for local media) into Meraki’s growing portfolio of specialist recruitment businesses, creating new opportunities for collaboration, knowledge-sharing and cross-sector support. Importantly, SERT now has access to a £1.4million investment facility for the business.
Nick Gordon, founder of Meraki Capital, said:“This is our second deal of the year and a clear step in building a focused group of recruitment brands that can support critical industries. SERT now benefits from our established resource proposition and sector expertise, and they’ll be able to amplify that through our wider group.”
Mark Edwards, CEO at SERT said: “Joining Meraki gives us a platform to move quicker and do more. The ability to tap into other specialist recruitment firms in the group, compare best practice and build joint capabilities will make us stronger.
Access to Meraki’s outsourcing team in South Africa is a genuine advantage for scaling our service without compromising on quality. Meraki immediately had our attention due to its overwhelming recruitment knowledge - something other non-specialist investors can’t boast about.”
SERT will gain access to Meraki’s group infrastructure, including operational playbooks, shared talent pipelines, tech-focused solutions and the firm’s outsourcing capability in South Africa, designed to drive scale, margin efficiency and faster delivery.
SERT COO, Ben Knight, added:“The sectors we serve are growing fast and the skills challenge is real - we have an established training solution that deploys stronger candidates into the field.
Being part of Meraki’s recruitment group means we can stay specialist, while gaining the operational depth and collaborative ecosystem needed to deliver at pace. It’s really exciting and our team has renewed enthusiasm for the future.”
Meraki Capital’s acquisition strategy focuses on founder-led recruitment and human capital businesses with strong operational fundamentals, where shared infrastructure and group synergies can create compound growth.
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