The board of Brian Yeardley Continental is celebrating a management buyout of the company which sees MD Kevin Hopper, along with marketing director Sarah Hopper, financial director Damien Sharpe and other members of the management team, acquire the remaining 50% shareholding of founder Brian Yeardley’s shares.

Kevin and Sarah Hopper are now the majority shareholders of the company, holding a 65% share, whilst FD Damien Sharpe, operations director Martyn Batstone, general cargo manager Jordan Potts, import and export manager Martin Darwood, events office manager Melissa Ness, and live events co-ordinator Shaun Wood each have a percentage of the remaining 35% shares.

Brian Yeardley Continental was founded in 1975 by Brian Yeardley, who retired from the company in 2010. Since then the business has been run by Kevin Hopper.

The company, which is now branded as CARGOBY and TRUCKINGBY, operates from its head office in Featherstone, West Yorkshire, and employs around 100 staff.

It also has an office and warehouse in Ashford, Kent, just off Junction 10 of the M20, close to the channel ports and to Eurotunnel.

The international transport company specialises in transporting goods, including hazardous and non-hazardous chemicals, automotive and white goods, pharmaceutical goods, food and drink plus high value goods, for both export and import, with daily departures for full loads and groupage consignments to all European countries including Scandinavia.

A large part of its growth over the past ten years has been its move into the live event industry with the launch of TRUCKINGBY, a subsidiary of Brian Yeardley Continental.

TRUCKINGBY now works with some of the largest bands in the world, moving all their equipment when on tour, throughout the UK, EU, Eastern Europe and Scandinavia.


TRUCKINGBY truck and trailer

 

Clients include Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Morgan Wallen, Tate McRea, Girls Aloud, John Mayer, Genesis, Florence & the Machine, Tom Grennan, Paul Weller, Sir Van Morrison, Simply Red, and Simple Minds.

As well as music touring TRUCKINGBY specialises in corporate events working for some of the biggest household names in the world.

Kevin Hopper said: “These are very exciting times for the company as we move into our 50th year of trading.

“The MBO has given the company the succession plan it has been looking to achieve for a number of years, giving the company the additional stability it needed for continued growth in both the General Cargo and Live Events into the future.

“I am very proud of the young management team we now have, and they are very ambitious and enthusiastic about taking the company forward and making it even more successful as they now own part of it.

“As well as our management team and our two strong new brands, the business is now being driven by its people, who will continue to focus on providing our customers with the best possible service.

The MBO team was headed by Damien Sharpe and advised by Schofield Sweeney Solicitors in Leeds who helped with the negotiations and handled the legal matters throughout.

Main picture left to right: Kevin Hopper, Sarah Hopper and Damien Sharpe