Lucketts Group has bought North Hampshire-based Mortons Travel, just a few months after the Fareham business added Solent Coaches to its growing portfolio, a deal that also included Coliseum Coaches and Worthing Coaches.
The move brings Lucketts’ total number of vehicles to around 175, with 300 staff, and widens its reach in the north of the county and beyond into Berkshire. It makes Lucketts Group the ninth-largest UK-owned private independent operator.
All 60 Mortons Travel staff will be retained and Lucketts MD Tony Lawman says the plan is to grow the fellow family business: “There are a lot of synergies between Lucketts and Mortons, not least the fact that it’s a family owned company with our same core values of safety, reliability, quality and attention to detail.”
Mortons Travel will retain its name, coaches and client portfolio. The former shareholders of Mortons Travel, Adrian and Joanne Morton, wanted to pass the company on to a fellow family business and say that they now look forward to spending more time with their young children.
Mr Morton adds: “Having grown the company over 14 years, it felt like the right time to pass the business on to someone who could develop it long into the future. Lucketts has an enviable reputation in the business and our loyal customers and staff will be in safe hands.”
Mortons Travel is known for its smartly-presented fleet, most notably its 100-seat high-capacity tri-axle double decker buses. It has built itself a formidable reputation across all areas of coach travel.
