Stephensons of Essex and NIBS Buses parent company Eastern Transport Holdings has been sold to an employee ownership trust by previous sole shareholder Bill Hiron.
Mr Hiron remains Chairman of the business under its new structure as part of a leadership team that is largely unchanged. Managing Director Dean Robbie and Finance Director Gary Raven hold their positions, and Mark Sayer steps up to the newly created role of Engineering Director. He was previously Fleet Engineer.
The transfer of ownership completed on 27 October. Mr Hiron purchased Stephensons in 2001 and has significantly grown it in the intervening period. In 2018, NIBS Buses of Wickford was acquired by Eastern Transport Holdings.
Stephensons began in 1972 with one coach. At the time of sale to Mr Hiron 29 years later, it ran contracts and private hire from an operating centre in Rochford. Since then, several other depots have been opened, and the business now operates into Cambridgeshire and Suffolk as well as its native Essex.
Current turnover is £16 million. 200 staff are employed and 140 buses are on collective fleet strength, with almost three million passengers are carried per year. Galloway Travel Group does not form part of the sale.
Speaking about the sale, Mr Hiron says: “Our company has grown from 10 vehicles and a turnover of a few hundred thousand pounds on the basis of continued investment in both new and modern second-hand vehicles, and a reputation for high standards of service.
“That has been achieved by the hard work and enthusiasm of everyone here – from cleaners and drivers, engineering and supervisors, to managers – so it seems entirely appropriate that the team should be given the opportunity of taking the company to its next stage of development.”
Under an employee ownership trust, all shares in a company are held in trust on behalf of the employees, who are beneficiaries of that rather than individual shareholders.
Such an ownership structure gives them a stake in the company without personal risk or expense and is recognised as being beneficial for employee engagement and motivation. It is thought that the sale of Eastern Transport Holdings to an employee ownership trust is the first such deal involving a bus operator in England.
Mr Robbie adds: “We already benefit from being locally owned and managed, with short lines of communication and a lean management structure, but we anticipate that the prospect of working for an employee-owned company will set us above others in the area in our ability to retain and attract high-quality staff, enabling further expansion in the future.
“This is a hugely exciting development for all of the team, and I feel privileged to be at the helm as we evolve into this next phase of our existence.”
