The Delivery Group expands as P2P joins the UK’s fastest growing delivery firm.
London, 17th October 2016 – The Delivery Group and international e-commerce logistics operator, P2P, have today announced a partnership which will bring together three of the UK’s post and parcel sector leaders under common ownership.
Established in March 2015, The Delivery Group is the parent group to Secured Mail and CMS Network. With P2P joining the business, The Delivery Group will have an estimated turnover of c.£200 million, operating from six locations, with over 500 employees and handle in excess of 500 million items per annum. The company provides services including international and domestic e-commerce and mail deliveries, direct marketing mail distribution, managed mail solutions and specialist financial documents logistics.
Existing private equity backer of The Delivery Group, Next Wave Partners LLP, supported the transaction with additional investment taking their total investment to £13 million while simultaneously closing a £35 million debt refinancing with Apollo Global Management LLC’s MidCap Financial.
P2P is one of the UK’s leading international e-commerce logistics operations. The business employs over 150 staff and is partnered with some of the UK’s largest and best known brands including ASOS, The Hut Group, and Gardners Books, providing both tracked and untracked e-commerce distribution services from its locations at Basildon and Heathrow.
Peter Wood, Investment Director at Next Wave Partners LLP commented: “We are delighted that P2P has joined The Delivery Group and believe that the combined entity will create a market leading e-commerce logistics proposition with a strong culture of customer service and an innovative approach. As evidenced by the recent acquisition of UK Mail by Deutsche Post DHL, we are continuing the wave of consolidation in the sector as customer purchasing habits continue to drive growth in e-commerce. The Delivery Group is now well placed to leverage these growth opportunities. We are proud to have backed the Group’s transformational growth story from c.£30 million of sales when we made our initial investment in Secured Mail in 2011 through to c.£200 million in 2016”.
CEO of P2P, Ian Dowie and COO, Malcolm Barrell, will both join The Delivery Group’s board of directors alongside Chairman, Paul Carvell, Chief Financial Officer, Michael Owen, Secured Mail’s CEO, Mark Bigley, CMS’s CEO, Steve Stokes, and Investor Directors Peter Wood and Stephen Walls from Next Wave Partners LLP.
P2P’s Founder and CEO, Ian Dowie said: “We have chosen to join The Delivery Group not only because we could see the exciting service opportunities that we can offer together, but because the cultural fit and focus on the customer was evident right from the first meeting. We look forward to working alongside Mark Bigley and Steve Stokes and their teams to create something special.”
Paul Carvell, Chairman of The Delivery Group commented: “P2P brings an even greater international perspective and expertise to The Delivery Group. Its range of services, including the pioneering and innovative worldwide tracked delivery solution designed specifically for the e-commerce sector, TRAKPAK, provides tremendous new options for our existing e-commerce customers. P2P will continue to provide the same great service under the same trading names and will be run by the same management team.”
About Next Wave Partners LLP
Next Wave Partners is a UK- based private equity fund manager focused on investing transformational growth capital. Founded in 2002, it raised its first external fund in 2007 and now has assets under management of €350 million. The firm invest in fast growing, established businesses with strong positions in developing markets and clearly identifiable growth opportunities. Next Wave target companies in the business and consumer services sectors.
About P2P
P2P Mailing are an independent distribution provider dedicated to e-commerce. The business employs over 150 staff, providing international delivery services to domestic and international e-commerce markets. The firm is partnered with some of the UK’s largest and best known brands and online retailers, providing both tracked and untracked services from its processing facility at Basildon and linehaul hub at Heathrow. P2P dispatches over 11 million parcels a year worldwide.
About The Delivery Group: Next Wave first invested in Secured Mail in 2011 which was founded by Mark Bigley in 2006, Secured Mail now handles over 450m items of mail and is one of the largest technology enabled ecommerce, retail and postal logistics businesses in the UK. The key products include a range of ecommerce delivery options, bulk mail, unsorted mail and international mail. Clients include DST, Screwfix, Centrica and Paperback Shop. CMS London was started in 1998, and Steve Stokes joined as CEO in 2007. Since then the business has gone from strength to strength and is now a one stop shop provider of managed mail services including managed mail rooms, specialist financial document delivery and a full range of international courier services. The company became part of The Delivery Group in March 2015. CMS boasts amongst its clients Barclays, Haymarket, Warner Music Group and Financial Times as well as servicing a number of major Charities.
About MidCap Financial: MidCap Financial is a middle market-focused, balance sheet lender that provides debt solutions to companies across all industries. The company is headquartered in Bethesda, MD, with regional offices in Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco, and focuses on the debt needs of the middle market in five areas: general asset-based, leveraged finance, life sciences, lender finance and real estate.
Additional information about MidCap Financial can be found at www.midcapfinancial.com
MidCap Financial refers to MidCap FinCo Limited, a private limited company domiciled in Ireland, and its subsidiaries. MidCap Financial is managed by Apollo Capital Management, L.P., a subsidiary of Apollo Global Management, pursuant to an investment management agreement between Apollo Capital Management, L.P. and MidCap FinCo Limited. References to MidCap Financial prior to January 2015 are to its predecessor, MidCap Financial, LLC.
The Delivery Group was advised on the transaction by:
Robert W. Baird & Cowho acted as lead financial advisor on the refinancing
PwC provided financial, operational and tax due diligence
Hill Dickinson and Macfarlanes provided legal advice.
CIL Consultants provided commercial due diligence
Intuitus provided IT due diligence
Highwire Consulting provided management due diligence
