Former Scotland rugby star's removal firm takes over rival

Sterling Sinclair Removals (SSR) has successfully completed a takeover of rivals Letford Removals in a deal worth in excess of £100,000.

On the move: Neil Adam Sinclair

The acquisition sees Letford added to the SSR portfolio and underlines the firm’s emergence as one of Scotland’s fastest-growing removal companies.

The award-winning removals and storage company operates UK-wide for both residential and commercial contracts and under the agreement Letford’s livery will still be seen on the roads.

“We pride ourselves on the service we provide, reliability and customer satisfaction and this acquisition will help us improve even more,” said SSR founder and managing director Neil Adam Sinclair, who is based in Edinburgh.

Neil Adam Sinclair's removal firm is growing in strength

“Letford Removals has been a family-run company for over 30 years and being a family-run business ourselves, we were keen that the name didn’t disappear completely.

“We have worked hard to earn a very good reputation in the industry and this deal will help us go from strength to strength as we look to keep growing and keep the country moving.”

The deal sees SSR extend its fleet of vehicles to 11 and is the second takeover Sinclair, 28, has concluded since establishing the family-run business five years ago, Larbert Carriers in Falkirk having been his first buy-out in August 2019.

Despite the challenges of the pandemic, it has been a strong last six months for the company, with staffing levels having more than doubled to 16 with recruitment in areas including sales, senior management, logistics and accounts.

Turnover is also up significantly on this time last year and the former professional rugby player with London Irish and USA Perpignan and ex- Scotland U20 star is very pleased with the growth to date.

“When I stopped playing professional rugby to set up the company, I wasn’t sure how quickly things would progress,” he said. “When I walked away from the game, it was supposed to be just for one year while I got my enthusiasm back but I never went back to it.

“Seeing the growth we have achieved in five years, it validates my decision to hang up the boots, although I’m still enjoying playing for Heriot’s in the Super Sixes. When I see all the trucks out on the road, the top service we provide to people and the really positive customer reviews, it makes it all worthwhile.

“We have a happy team and enjoy making others happy by doing a good job for our clients.”

Self-storage has also been in great demand in the past year, with SSR having increased its capacity in Stirling from 35 to 125 units, with the facility running at 100 per cent capacity.

Based in Stirling, SSR also operates out of Edinburgh, Glasgow, Livingston and North Berwick and in January the firm won the prestigious Removals Industry Ombudsman Scheme’s “Perfect Record Award” for the second year running.

The accolade is given to removal firms which haven’t been the subject of customer complaints, less than 100 out of more than 4500 businesses UK-wide having achieved the honour to date.

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