British logistics provider Menzies Distribution is continuing to expand consolidated parcel deliveries of e-commerce orders in remote areas with the acquisition of Oban Express.
The Oban-based firm, which transports around 450,000 packages a year, will become part of Menzies Distribution’s national network. Oban Express, which currently serves Western Scotland and the Hebrides, will increase the depth of Menzies Distribution’s reach across the area.
It follows this summer’s takeover of regional parcels firm AJG, with some three million parcels a year, giving the cargo services group a network in northern Scotland.
Menzies Distribution said the latest acquisition gives it a new portfolio of customers which will receive the same high standards of service they had come to expect from Oban Express, as well as an additional platform for its parcel delivery consolidation service that allows national distribution businesses to access isolated areas cost-effectively.
Forsyth Black, Managing Director, Menzies Distribution, said: “The acquisition of Oban Express brings even more expertise to the Menzies Distribution portfolio and deepens our service offer in Scotland. We have now strengthened the geographical reach of our specialist parcel consolidation service, which dramatically cuts the cost of delivery to isolated areas for national carriers.”
He added: “Menzies Distribution is now perfectly placed to serve carriers working for large mail-order firms by consolidating their parcels into one cost-effective, final-mile delivery, making it easier for customers in Western Scotland and the Hebrides to order online and get their goods quickly at a reasonable cost. This is a model we’ve used successfully for newspaper distribution across Scotland, and now we can do it for mail order and e-commerce too.”
Oban Express operates depots in Oban and Glasgow, supported by a fleet of 45 vehicles. The company’s directors will remain with the business and play a crucial role in integrating Oban Express within the wider Menzies Distribution network over the coming months.
The acquisition comes on the back of a variety of moves by Menzies Distribution to grow in e-commerce as a neutral consolidation partner for major parcel carriers. In June 2015 Menzies Distribution acquired Inverness-based AJG Parcels, with two regional hubs and a fleet of 100 trucks, which delivers in the remote Scottish Highlands and Islands regions as a neutral final-mile delivery partner for major parcel carriers.
Menzies Distribution, which describes itself as “one of the largest overnight logistics networks in the UK” with eight hubs and 31 regional centres and a fleet of 1,900 trucks, currently delivers about 110 million items a year on behalf of customers in the media, travel and third-party logistics sectors. The bulk of this business is overnight delivery of newspapers and magazines to retail outlets.
