Zenith has acquired the fleet services, rental and finance operations of the Cartwright Group from administrators for an undisclosed sum. The move secures 259 jobs at sites across the UK.
Leeds headquartered Zenith is the UK’s leading independent leasing, fleet management and vehicle outsourcing business. It has acquired Cartwright Fleet Services Limited, Cartwright Rentals Limited and Cartwright Finance sales. The businesses will continue to trade as part of Zenith.
The move creates the UK’s largest HGV and specialist fleets with over 50,000 vehicles and one of the largest trailer rental fleets in the UK. Servicing capabilities will also be enhanced by combining Zenith’s network of specialist repair agents at workshops across the UK and in-house expertise. The mobile technician fleet will grow to 60 and provide national coverage to help keep vehicles on the road.
“We are backing a talented management team and people across the three Cartwright businesses we have acquired, and we look forward to working with their customers, employees and suppliers alike,” said Martin Jenkins, chief executive of the HGV and Specialist Vehicles Division and group strategy director at Zenith.
“The businesses have a good reputation in their sector and are a great fit with the customer-first culture at Zenith. Bringing these operations together is an important step in our strategic growth plans and supports our position as the leading provider of fleet services across all asset types in the UK.”
Cartwright Group is a privately owned commercial trailer manufacturer, trailer rental and fleet services provider based in Altrincham, Cheshire, with rental depots across the UK including in Leeds, Glasgow and Aldridge. The Group employs around 800 people. It appointed Deloitte as administrators as COVID-19 and lockdown adversely impacted trading. Zenith has not acquired any of the manufacturing operations.
“We are continuing to strengthen our ability to provide a one-stop solution for our customers fleet requirements. The acquisition enhances our customer proposition and enables us to provide additional services for truck, trailer, van and car. The trailer rental market is critical to supporting peak periods of demand for supermarkets, home delivery and logistics companies, all of which are growing markets. At Zenith, we always put our customers first, and this acquisition is a key part of our overall strategy. Many of our existing customers that are high street names, source trailers and other services from Cartwright today,” added Tim Buchan, chief executive of Zenith.
