Yodel, the struggling British parcel courier which is owned by the Barclay family, is on the brink of entering administration, having failed to find a willing buyer, reports revealed on Thursday.
Teneo Financial Advisory, the insolvency expert, is believed to be on standby as the delivery company explores “strategic development options”, indicating that the Barclay family is hopeful a sale can still go through.
The former Telegraph owners have been attempting to raise funds and untangle their web of financial ventures to pay off the debts owed to Lloyds Bank, which originally caused them to lose ownership of the national paper.
To raise funds, the family has sold the London HQ of the political magazine The Spectator and is hoping to sell its nearly €17 million superyacht The Lady Beatrice.
Competing with giants like Royal Mail, Evri and Amazon Logistics, Yodel reported handled 191 million parcels in the previous year, with revenues lifting by 3.4% year-on-year.
The Barclay family is believed to have considered investing an additional £25 million into the courier to improve its chances of a sale, reports said.
Privately-owned The Delivery Group, which focuses on parcels and mail in London, is reported to be one of the parties interested in a purchase.
Accounts for the courier were due by the end of 2023, but have not yet been published on Companies House.
Similarly, another of the Barclay family’s companies, which owns The Very Group, is late with publishing accounts.