Eddie Stobart has purchased a 50% holding in express delivery company Speedy Freight.

Puro Ventures, trading as Speedy Freight, is a provider of nationwide B2B express freight services.

“This acquisition complements the group's service offering to business customers in the e-commerce and manufacturing, industrial and bulk sector and broadens its capabilities across the whole supply chain,” Eddie Stobart said in a statement.

Speedy Freight is structured around a regional franchisee model, with independent couriers working under the parent company’s patronage with access to its marketing and technology. It does not hold an O-licence itself, according to official records.

Parent company Puro Ventures has traditionally published only abbreviated accounts at Companies House. For a company to do this it must tick the box for at least two of the following: annual turnover of no more than £6.5m; no more than £3.26m on the balance sheet; and less than 51 employees.

Ian Southworth and Michael Le-Gallez were, pre-deal, listed as equal owners of the company. Puro Ventures was incorporated at Companies House in 2006. Its headquarters are in Knutsford, Cheshire

In April, at the time of its listing on the Alternative Investment Market, Eddie Stobart revealed plans to buy retail logistics management group iForce with a pipeline of further acquisitions, such as the likes of Speedy, promised.

In a pre-close trading statement, the logistics provider added that in the six months to 31 May 2017, sales had climbed 13% to £287m year-on-year. It added that EBIT margin has also increased year-on-year.

CEO Alex Laffey said: "We are pleased that following our successful IPO in April we have continued to trade well. Our ongoing investment in the business and targeted acquisitions are giving us greater capabilities across our e-commerce and manufacturing, industrial and bulk sectors.

“Our operations continue to trade well as we move into the second half of the financial year, and we look forward to delivering a full year performance in line with market expectations."

Interim results are due on 31 August.

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