North West business puts foot on gas with £4m acquisition

NORTH WEST based coach company Selwyns has acquired Haytons of Manchester in a move that signals ambitious plans to increase turnover by 50 per cent in the next 12 months.

On 1st December Selwyns, headquartered in Weston, Runcorn, acquired the £4m turnover Gorton based business as part of its strategic plans to grow its North West client base.

The deal sees Selwyns take on nearly 70 staff including the existing managing director Barry Hayton, his management team, drivers and engineers as well as the fleet of 25 coaches.

The existing Haytons Manchester depot will remain as the main operations centre to be controlled as a separate division of Selwyns.

Selwyns has been established for over 40 years and operates private hire coaches and buses providing contract services to many local authorities and blue chip clients including National Express, Barclays and Emirates.

North West accountancy firm HURST brokered the deal. It has been advising Selwyns for the past ten years.

Selwyn Jones, managing director of Selwyns, said:
“It was clear from the outset that Selwyns and Haytons had good synergies and the takeover has followed a smooth transition process. From a client point of view, all business will operate as usual so there will be consistency and no disruption to service. I’ve always respected Haytons, and it’s fantastic to have the Haytons name along with Barry and the team at Gorton in our armoury.
“Although it’s been a tough climate for the past couple of years, our strong base has enabled us to grow and take advantage of opportunities the competition has been unable to fulfil. I’ve got my eye on some interesting deals and new markets to enter over the next 12 months and we are all excited by the possibilities for the business.”

Corporate finance partner at HURST Nigel Barratt advised on the deal. He said:
“The acquisition is a strategic move by Selwyns to grow the business and together we’ll be actively looking at further opportunities in the New Year. The deal gives Selwyns two operational platforms to grow from allowing it to cover the entire region. Selwyns is an example of an ambitious, well established North West business that HURST is proud to be associated with it.”

The acquisition brings the total staff count to 250 people working across three bases in Runcorn , Manchester and St Helens.

The business was founded in 1968 by the late Robert Alun Jones, father of Selwyn Jones. In 1979 it acquired Yates Tours and in 1984 opened a base at Manchester Airport. It went on to acquire Starline Travel in 1996 and Hardings Tours of Liverpool in 2006.