Yodel saved from collapse by fast-growing rival

Parcel delivery firm Yodel has been saved from collapse in a last-minute rescue deal led by one of its rivals.

The business has been taken on by YDLGP, a newly-formed company backed by investment bank Solano Partners and the team behind logistics firm Shift.

Yodel makes about 190 million deliveries a year and it is thought the deal will safeguard thousands of jobs.

Its chief executive Mike Hancox said the move will "ensure continuity" for employees and customers too.

The firm was owned by the Barclay family and its clients include big brands such as Argos, Wren Kitchens, Gousto, second-hand clothes platform Vinted and the Very Group - also owned by the Barclay family.

The Liverpool-based company with 50 sites was acquired by YDLGP for an undisclosed sum.

The consortium had been in discussions with Yodel since the middle of last year.

The firm employs about 10,000 people and there had been concerns about its future as one of the UK's biggest courier companies.

The consortium behind the rescue deal includes the founder and leadership team behind Yodel's rapidly-growing rival Shift.

As part of the deal, YDLGP is also set to buy Shift, which relaunched Tuffnells last June, a firm that specialises in freight with irregular dimensions or weight.

The hope is that once the deal is through, a new "super scale" logistics platform will have been created, Yodel said in a statement on Tuesday,combining Shift's AI-driven platform with Tuffnells' specialism and Yodel's customer reach.

Jacob Corlett, the boss of Shift, said: "I am incredibly proud of what we have built at Shift in the last few years, rapidly scaling our tech logistics platform.

"At the heart of this merger is Shift's revolutionary AI-driven technology platform, promising a future where efficiency and automation become the backbone of logistics operations."

Although Yodel generated £561.8m in revenue in the year to 31 December 2023, along with adding clients like Boden and Zalando to its roster recently, it has come under pressure from competitors.

Last year, Citizens Advice rated Yodel as the joint worst of the largest five UK courier firms. Along with Evri, it was given an overall score of two points out of five.

Reports had suggested that the firm would have had to call in administrators if a buyer had not been found.

Analysts previously told the BBC that the market for delivering parcels had become "incredibly competitive" and "cut-throat" as more and more customers opt for home deliveries and online shopping has boomed in the wake of the pandemic.

The Barclay family has faced scrutiny in recent months after the Telegraph newspaper and the Spectator magazine, both of which it owns, were put up for sale by Lloyds Banking Group.

The bank seized the titles from the Barclays as it sought to recover £1.1bn it was owed.

The family repaid the debt using funds from the United Arab Emirates, effectively ending the auction for the Telegraph. The complex nature of the arrangement has led the government to launch an inquiry into the deal.