Liverpool-based UK parcel delivery group, Yodel, has achieved an £85m funding package that will enable it to invest in plans for further automation and modernisation over the next three years, particularly focusing on the acceleration of consumer Out of Home (OoH) deliveries.
The investment is supported by a consortium of investors including PayPoint and IGF (Independent Growth Finance).
In June this year the company, which was rescued in a takeover deal just four months earlier, said it was in talks over new funding to recapitalise the business.
Yodel will continue to be led by CEO Mike Hancox, who took control of the company this June.
Hancox will retain a significant shareholding following the new funding, and will work with the existing senior management team and strategic business partners, including PayPoint plc, which made a strategic investment of £10m in June, and operate the leading OoH network, Collect+, in more than 12,000 locations across the UK.
Over the past year, Yodel has experienced record growth with increased volumes supported by multiple new contract wins and renewals with some of the biggest and fastest growing ecommerce businesses serving the UK.
This growth has been supported by strong demand for its Out-of-Home operations and the booming customer-to-customer market (C2C), with Yodel seeing a 200% uptick in C2C volumes in the past two years.
To meet this demand, the business has continued to make significant investments in its network and infrastructure including a new 162,000 sq ft depot in Huyton, doubling Yodel’s capacity in the North West. The business also continues to make multimillion-pound investments in its fleet.
Mike Hancox
Mike Hancox said: “I have to say thank you to my colleagues and our clients, who have been very supportive whilst Yodel has gone through a change of ownership, after many years with the Barclay family.
“We are excited to develop our Out of Home delivery offer and grateful for the support of the investors who will make this possible.”
The business was owned by the Barclay family, which also controls online retail group Very, also based in the south Liverpool district of Speke, before a rescue deal in February this year by a privately-owned consortium comprising YDLGP, backed by Jacob Corlett, founder of international parcel delivery group Shift, and merchant bank Solano Partners which rescued thousands of jobs.
Since Yodel was acquired by YDLGP, it has carried out a comprehensive strategic review assessing its compatibility for a merge with the Shift Group and Tuffnells.
Following this review, Yodel has decided that it will not merge with Tuffnells or the Shift Group and will operate as a stand alone entity supported by long term investment from strategic partners, including PayPoint, under the continued leadership of CEO Mike Hancox, who is also now a key shareholder.
The future plans for Tuffnells and the Shift Group will not be connected with Yodel.
Yodel makes more than 190 million deliveries annually from its sites across the UK.
Last year, it generated £561.8m in revenue, adding clients including eBay and Boden.
Yodel was provided legal advice by a team led by Tim Bird at Fieldfisher that included Adam Jones from the firm’s Manchester office.