A company founded by the owner of Manchester Airport has acquired parking reservation platform ParkVia.
CAVU said the deal was part of its plans to become the number one provider of airport products and services worldwide.
It added the transaction will see it grow its inventory of airport parking worldwide and further expand its presence in Europe as well as unlocking new opportunities in ports, rail stations, city centres and other locations.
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The deal provides an exit for ParkVia’s investor Mercia, which has backed the company since 2018.
Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Manchester, ParkVia won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade in both 2014 and 2019.
Mark Pegler, ParkVia managing director, said: "For over 15 years we have been offering customers a one-stop shop where they can choose the right airport parking for their needs, combined with other airport products such as lounges and fast track.
"Bringing our businesses together will enable us to double down on our vision and provide us with mutual opportunities to accelerate our growth faster than we could on our own, creating more value for our passengers and the businesses that serve them."
Martin Jones, CAVU CEO, added: "This is an exciting opportunity for both ParkVia and CAVU. Our organisations have shared ambitions, culture and values.
"We’ll be combining our inventory to access new customers through more channels in our core markets, as well as exploring new markets together as we continue to scale our travel marketplace globally."
Mercia and the shareholders were advised by a North West team from Grant Thornton corporate finance led by partner Peter Terry, supported by Chris Ryan and Alex Parry. Brabners provided legal advice to the shareholders.
Chris Ryan, associate director at Grant Thornton in the North West, said: "This is an excellent outcome for all parties. ParkVia has recovered strongly from the pandemic and offers CAVU, a great springboard into Europe as it enters a phase of accelerated growth.
"This is the fourth transaction in just five months involving a tech-focused deal in the business services sector, reflecting the strong appetite from both private equity and corporate buyers for scalable assets delivering increased efficiencies and recurring revenues."
Mercia’s investment came from its EV Growth II Fund. Its team included Wayne Thomas and Alex Hirst.
Mr Thomas, managing director of the fund, said: "We have worked closely with Mark and the management team since the investment, supporting the business through the difficult days of the pandemic, which has helped to ensure that it bounced back quickly.
"Since then we have continued to introduce new initiatives to bolster trading. This is a perfect example of how Mercia’s private equity model can assist growth and achieve a great result.
"Becoming part of CAVU and the wider Manchester Airports Group plc is a natural progression for the business and will help establish it as a dominant player in the airport car park booking market."
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