A Manchester delivery tech firm which once raised almost $100 million in investment has been sold for £1 – and the acquirer has endured trials and tribulations of its own.
Sorted Group Holdings has joined Bristol-headquartered Huboo, which itself raised more than $150m funding but was saved from administration just before Christmas 2024 in a £9 deal.
The news comes just two years after Location Sciences completed its reverse takeover of Sorted in a £66.73 deal and it was admitted to the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange.
Sorted was launched as MyParcelDelivery (MPD Group) in 2010 by David Grimes but ran into financial difficulties after raising nearly $100m in investment.
In January 2024, BusinessCloud reported how Location Sciences had agreed to buy Sorted for £66.73, as well as take on the global software firm’s debts of £4m plus interest and invest £3m of capital.
At its height in 2021, Sorted closed a $40m Series C investment round led by Chrysalis Investments and Arete Capital Partners.
The investment came less than nine months after Sorted raised another $15m to fund future growth.
In January 2021, Sorted saw 243% year-on-year growth as it was named by the FT as one of the fastest-growing companies in Europe.
However, the company’s growth had not kept pace with its forecasts and it never turned a profit.
On June 28, 2023, Location Sciences announced that it had entered into exclusive non-binding heads of terms regarding a potential acquisition and the deal completed on 30th January, 2024.
Huboo, meanwhile, was set up in 2017 by Martin Bysh and Paul Dodd and offered third-party logistics services – effectively storing online retailers’ stock and fulfilling orders for them.
Operating from micro-warehouses across Europe, it sponsored football club Bristol City as well as Bristol Bears rugby and other sports teams in the city.
By May 2024 it had 700+ employees, operations in five countries, £50m in annual recurring revenue and had raised more than $150m in funding.
Bysh was replaced as CEO by former Carphone Warehouse operations head Andrew Pinnington when it raised its last round of funding in mid-2024 – and by 23rd December 2024 it was insolvent after failing to make payroll for its 600 employees.
A pre-pack administration deal backed by BlackRock, Ada Ventures and Atalla Capital saved it from collapse and secured those jobs, but reports suggest the new owners did not take over any of Huboo’s outstanding debts or credit obligations.
The £9 deal saw Goodwill and Intellectual Property bought for £1 each; shares in Holdco NL for a quid; and Stock, IT Equipment, Customer Contracts and Business Records also each sold for £1.
Huboo came under fire from former customers who accused it of losing their stock.
Following the £1 deal for Sorted, the combined group will process over 100m parcels annually and serve more than 400 brands and retailers – representing circa £1 billion in gross merchandise value.
The combined Huboo Group will operate from established sites in Bristol, Manchester, Eindhoven and Madrid, which Huboo said marks “a significant and proud entry into the dynamic North West market and strengthening Huboo’s ability to deliver truly national coverage across the UK, complementing its established presence in the South West and South East”.
Sorted’s Manchester office will continue operations.
The business said it plans to continue expanding its presence across the US, Asia and the Middle East as it scales globally.
Jo Kennedy, current managing director of, Huboo, said: “Bringing Sorted into the Huboo Group allows us to connect fulfilment, shipping and returns into a single intelligent platform. Together, we can help eCommerce brands – from fast-growth disruptors to established retailers – operate more efficiently, deliver better customer experiences, and scale with greater confidence.”
Paul Hill, product director at Sorted, added: “Becoming part of the same group as Huboo gives our technology, people and customers a stronger long-term platform. There is a clear fit between Huboo’s fulfilment capability and Sorted’s delivery technology, and we are excited by what the two businesses can build together over time.”
Mahmoud Atalla, executive chairman of Brislington Holdco, parent company of Huboo and Sorted, said: “Sorted represents a natural next step in Huboo’s transformation as a leading European eCommerce fulfilment and supply chain platform. By bringing together two highly complementary businesses, we are building a more powerful proposition for customers across the full spectrum – from emerging brands to large-scale retailers – while continuing to support Sorted’s broad ecosystem of logistics and retail partners.
“This transaction is supported by continued investor backing, with over £200m invested in the Group since inception, including more than £30m since the beginning of last year. This enables the acceleration of Huboo’s growth, with further investment planned as we scale.
“Our ambition is to build the core operating platform and underlying systems underpinning European commerce.”