Rotala purchases entire bus business and 20-strong fleet

West Midlands bus group Rotala has acquired Johnsons’ entire bus business and 20-strong fleet for £936,000 cash.

Johnsons based in Henley operates commercial and contracted bus services across Warwickshire and the southern West Midlands.

Following completion, the business, trading at present under the “Excelbus” brand, will be subsumed into the company’s Diamond Bus business operating out of its existing Redditch depot and the buses will be rebranded into Diamond Bus livery.

Approximately 60 employees are expected to transfer to Diamond Bus with the business.

The acquisition will extend the group’s network of bus services in Warwickshire and the West Midlands and make more efficient use of the capacity of the company’s Redditch depot.

Rotala estimates that the assets being acquired have annual revenues of approximately £3.5m ahe directors believe that it will generate EBITDA of approximately £200,000 per annum.
 
Simon Dunn, Chief Executive of Rotala, said: “In our recently published Annual Report, we highlighted our belief that the Group was very well placed to take advantage of the acquisition opportunities that were likely to arise as commercial reality returned to the bus industry after COVID 19.  The Acquisition is an example of such a transaction and we continue to look for others. 

“The Acquisition also fits in with a key part of the Group’s strategy in seeking to consolidate smaller businesses in our existing areas of operation so that we make better use of our current depot capacity and so spread overheads over a larger business, with a corresponding increase in business efficiency.” 

Completion of the Acquisition is expected to occur on 29 May 2022.