Bedfords wins lucrative logistics deal with news group

The announcement follows financial results which show that the Leeds-based Bedfords Group recorded a rise in profits of 33 per cent to £630,587 over the last financial year. The company has 160 staff, 78 vehicles and a turnover of £25.44m.

Phil Lockwood, the director of Bedfords Group, said: “After productive negotiations we are thrilled to announce this extension of not only the contract, but our long-standing relationship with the Daily Mail.

The positive group performance in the year ending 2013 and commitment from our customers supports our plans for expansion in 2014, with planned new depots in the Midlands and London, as well as the current operating centres in Wolverhampton, Newcastle and Sheffield.

“Bedfords is able to seamlessly integrate into its clients’ businesses to provide logistics management services, and we recognise the importance of employing regional hauliers to cut down on empty running costs, which is why we are investing in this expansion. This is not something that can be often said in our indus- try.”

n The publisher of the Daily Mail and MailOnline posted a six per cent increase in first-quarter revenue yesterday, boosted by a jump in online advertising.

Shares in Daily Mail & General Trust rose to a 13-year high after the update. Underlying revenue at the group, whose MailOnline has grown to be among the world’s most successful newspaper websites, reached £472m in the three months to December 31. It also publishes the Metro freesheet and Mail on Sunday title,

Online advertising revenue grew £5m to £14m for the quarter, offsetting a £1m drop to £53m in print advertising revenue at the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday.

Whereas some British newspapers including The Times and The Sun, owned by News Corp, have placed content behind paywalls, the Daily Mail has pursued an advertising led strategy to boost revenue. Finance director Stephen Daintith said he expected to see online advertising revenue in the US to at least double to £10m and that e-commerce through the site was proving popular.

“You’ll notice you can click through on certain photographs through to an opportunity to buy a dress or a handbag,” Mr Daintith said. “We’ve got commission rates of anything between five per cent and 12 per cent on retail price that we benefit from.”