Addison Lee in Lewis Day cabs deal
London minicabs giant Addison Lee today bought the passenger cars division of rival Lewis Day, which makes revenues of £18 million a year.
The Evening Standard has learnt the deal, set to complete in two weeks, sees Lewis Day being split up. Its founder, South African Hilton Lewis, sold the company's courier division to rival Citysprint and the passenger business to Addison Lee.
The transport firm's total revenues last year were £34 million and it employs 350 staff for its fleet of over 1800 vehicles and 17 offices.
Lewis still owns 70% of the business with his management team owning the rest.
Addison Lee would not reveal the value of the deal, but said it would add 10% to its annual turnover of £123 million. Managing director Liam Griffin dismissed any competition implications, saying: "There are 54,000 private-hire operators and 20,000 black cabs in London. We only have 3500 of those."
