Innovate Logistics has been put up for sale by parent company Eimskip, which cites increasing losses at the Nottinghamshire-based firm. The Icelandic shipping and logistics company's current book value for Innovate is €74.1m (£58.7m), which it will write off in the second quarter due to "Innovate's weakened financial position".
In a statement, Eimskip says recent market conditions have proved challenging, leading to lower than expected utilisation of warehouse and transportation network
assets. It adds that Innovate's lease and financial costs have significantly increased and the losses in recent months have weakened the company's financial position to such an extent as to affect ongoing operations.
"Given the challenging economic outlook in the UK and following a detailed review by Eimskip's board of directors in recent weeks, the board chose not to increase Eimskip's investment in Innovate and subsequently decided to write off Innovate's assets and look for potential buyers," the statement concludes.
Stephen Savage, Stephen Dargavel and Peter Osborne, who were also the prior owners of Innovate, will step down from the group's executive board. Eimskip initially invested in Innovate in 2006 with a 55% stake, taking a 100% share in 2007.
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