Halfords to acquire Universal Tyre and Autocentres for £15m

Halfords Group, a British automotive and cycling products retailer, has agreed to acquire Universal Tyre and Autocentres, a motoring services provider in the South East of the UK, for £15 million.

According to Halfords Group, nearly £9m of the consideration pertains to the acquisition of real-estate and the net cash position of the business. The remaining £6m is being paid for the underlying trading business.

The British automotive and cycling products retailer said that it will look to sell and lease back the property in the next few months.

Universal Tyre and Autocentres, which is based in Kent, has 201 sites and 89 commercial vans operating across the South East and on the east coast of the UK.

The company specialises in tyre services, which includes the supply and fitting of tyres for a wide variety of vehicles, from cars to commercial and agricultural vehicles. Besides, Universal Tyre and Autocentres offers general car maintenance and repairs such as servicing, brakes, and MOT.

The motoring services provider is expected to report revenue of over £31 million for the year ended 31 December 2020.

Halfords to acquire Universal Tyre and Autocentres for £15m. Photo courtesy of Halfords Group plc.

Halfords Group said that the acquisition of Universal Tyre and Autocentres takes it closer to its goal of having more than 550 garages in the UK and strengthens its coverage of the commercial truck and van market.

Post transaction, the automotive and cycling products retailer will have 374 garages, 185 commercial vans, and 136 mobile expert vans operating in its autocentres business.

Halfords Group said that alongside its 404 retail stores, it will offer motoring services from more than 1,000 locations across the UK.

Following on from our acquisitions of McConechy’s and Tyres on the Drive in 2019, this is another exciting step in the growth of Halfords’ motoring servicing business as we continue to inspire and support a lifetime of motoring and cycling, and establish ourselves as a leading motoring service provider in the UK.

Graham Stapleton – CEO of Halfords Group said: “We have a clearly stated strategy of building a market-leading Motoring Services offer, and the acquisition of Universal is another important step forward in helping us to achieve that goal.

“We continue to see strong demand for our Autocentres, for our expanding fleet of Halfords Mobile Expert vans, and for our growing commercial business. Universal will help us to meet that demand whilst also expanding our geographic footprint in a market for which we see significant potential.”