Hub ready for City Link
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• City Link, the express parcels and courier company, is set to open its national hub at Darlaston near Wolverhampton this month capable of moving 150,000 parcels a night.
The move marks the completion of a national trunking network established following the loss of the Red Star parcels contract in March.
City Link managing director Bob Thomas has been building up the company's branch network, with three new franchisees appointed so far this year (at Ipswich, Welwyn Garden City and Grantham), bringing the total to 54. He eventually hopes to have about 80 depots in the UK, most of them run by franchise holders.
A franchise prospectus is being prepared, and City Link is arranging training for prospective franchisees. Thomas says: "We would not sell a franchise to anyone with an existing business unless they are already in parcels, and then they would have to be prepared to rebrand to City Link."
City Link's turnover has grown by 39% so far this year, says Thomas, despite the loss of the Red Star contract. Negotiations are taking place to buy a London-based courier company with a £4m turnover.
City Link is also expanding fast overseas. Its first Continental office will be established in Brussels this autumn, and City Link's parent company Securiguard is keen to establish a presence in the US parcels market, based around New York.