Clearwater advises Yodel on its sale to YDLGP Ltd

Transaction

Yodel sold to a consortium of investors Solano Partners and Shift Group

Sell-side

Undisclosed

Role

Adviser to Yodel on its sale to YDLGP Ltd

Sector

Business Services

Region

Clearwater has advised Yodel, a leading independent UK logistics provider, on its sale to YDLGP Limited (YDLGP), a newly formed company. YDLGP is backed by a consortium of investors, including Solano Partners Ltd, an independent boutique investment bank, and international parcel delivery group, Shift.

With a wide-ranging and growing client base across diverse retail sectors, including very.com, Wren Kitchens, Gousto, Vinted, Whistl and Argos, Yodel makes 190+ million deliveries annually from its 50 sites (47 customer delivery depots and three sortation hubs). Yodel had been controlled by the Barclay family.

For the year ended 31 December 2023, Yodel generated €661m (£561.8m) revenue and has continued to take market share with new clients including eBay, Boden and Zalando. Yodel’s market position remains strong in the fast-growth Customer to Anywhere (C2X) market and will continue to increase its share of the market.

The transaction is expected to save thousands of jobs, with the Liverpool-based delivery company employing around 10,000 people nationwide.

Upon completion, the enlarged group will form a ‘super scale’ logistics platform serving both the parcels market through the Yodel business, and larger, irregular dimensions and weights (IDW) freight through the Tuffnells brand.

We’re extremely excited to begin the next chapter of Yodel’s journey, leveraging the scale of our business with the support of new shareholders and the future benefits of the Shift technology platform. Our customers have always been our priority and the transaction announced today allows us to ensure continuity for them, as well as our employees and wider stakeholders. We’d also like to say thank you to the team at Clearwater for their sound advice and support to get this transaction over the line.
Mike Hancox, CEO, Yodel

We are delighted to have worked with Mike and team to secure a buyer for Yodel, which supports the next stage of its journey. This is a fantastic opportunity to leverage the business’ existing market share and, most importantly, ensure that Yodel’s customers continue to receive a great service from them. The transaction is expected to protect thousands of jobs across the UK, which has always been at the forefront of our minds when looking to secure the right buyer for the business. We’d like to wish Yodel and YDLGP all the best.
Sarah Taylor, Partner, Clearwater