cj express

Hull-based haulier CJ Express has ceased trading and is set to go into liquidation just over two years after it was acquired by Premier Logistics.

Business recovery firm Leonard Curtis confirmed this week it has been instructed by Premier Logistics to place the firm into liquidation.

A spokeswoman at Leonard Curtis said: “The company has ceased to trade and we have been instructed to place the firm into liquidation.”

She added that Leonard Curtis will be contacting all creditors “in the next few days.”

Family firm CJ Express, which also traded as CJE Logistics, was bought by fellow former Pall-Ex member Premier Logistics in July 2015 for an undisclosed sum.

At the time, Premier Logistics MD Lee Christopher said the deal would expand Premier Logistics reach in the north of England and increase group turnover to £21m.

The acquisition created a combined fleet of 125 vehicles along with 300,000ft² of warehousing space across three locations.

Both operators left Pall-Ex earlier this year. A spokeswoman for the network said: "Premier Logistics was a member at the time that it bought CJ Express, but exited January this year and CJ Express exited shortly after."

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CJ Express founders, husband and wife team Nick and Susan Carter, joined the Premier Logistics team as commercial manager and health and safety manager as part of the deal, which they said at the time would bring continuity and growth for its stakeholders.

In its most recently published financial results for the eight months ending 31 December 2015, CJ Express reported a profit of £427,770 (2014: £384,440).

Premier Logistics' most recent annual results to 31 December 2015, the year in which it bought CJ Express, reveal  turnover rising to £18.9m (2015: £14.9m) and pre-tax profit falling to £427,770 (2014: £384,440).

In August this year, both Premier Logistics and CJ Express extended their accounting period from 31 December 2016 to 30 April 2017.

Premier Logistics had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.

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