Norman Broadbent up after successful share placing

Executive search firm Norman Broadbent rose strongly after it announced the successfully placed over two million new shares.

The company said it had raised £742,560, which would be invested into three new business development ventures.

The firm said it would extend its Leadership Consultancy and Executive Search into France and Benelux, create a new mid-market recruitment business, and become partner in a new social media consultancy.

The latter enterprise will provide direct solutions to in-house recruiters and a personal brand consultancy in social media profiling.

The group is also buying 51% of Brussels-based recruitment firm Acker Deboeck for £250,000.

Pierce Casey, Norman's Executive Chairman, said investment in these new companies represented a significant step towards the firm's objective of building a group of complimentary, human capital businesses.

"The Norman Broadbent executive search brand remains core to the group, but with these investments we have the opportunity to diversify into the upper end of the high volume recruitment market as well as building the board level leadership consultancy business in the UK and Europe," he added.

MM