US merger for London-based luggage delivery company
London-based First Luggage has completed a merger with its top three rivals in the US to create a new company.
The international door-to-door luggage collection and delivery service now owns 60% of a newly-formed group, which has an annual turnover of $5 million and includes the three US market leaders – Luggage Express, Sports Express and Virtual Bell-Hop.
All three brands will remain in the marketplace.
The group’s management says it expects to achieve annual growth of around 25% over the next five years.
It claims that with no stock and no debt, it is well-placed to take advantage of further opportunities for expansion and acquisition.
Since its foundation four years ago, First Luggage has recorded an annual growth rate of around 100%, has handled some 250,000 pieces of luggage and seen the number of items it has dispatched increase by 200% per year.
The company has announced it will cover new routes to Mauritius, Egypt, Russia and South Africa.
Founder and CEO Gideon Kasfiner said: “Despite the downturn, we anticipate strong growth rates for the business over the next few years as airlines increasingly look to charge more for passengers’ luggage and people get exasperated by baggage chaos at airport terminals.”
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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