Press Releases
SMEDVIG INVESTS £6.4 MILLION
TO FINANCE GROWTH OF THE UK'S LEADING CAR CLUB
Smedvig Capital, the London-based private equity company active in development capital for growth businesses, is pleased to announce that it has invested £6.4 million in Streetcar ("the Company") the UK's largest pay-as-you-go car club. The new capital will be used to finance Streetcar's aggressive growth plans, substantially increasing the number of locations and the size of the fleet whilst ensuring it maintains its very high levels of customer service.
Streetcar is the UK market leader in this rapidly growing concept providing a highly flexible, convenient and cost effective alternative to car ownership. Club members book a car online or over the phone as little as 30 minutes ahead of time and use remotely activated smartcards to unlock the vehicle which is typically within three minutes walk. At the end of the journey the car is returned to a dedicated Streetcar parking space and a travel log is automatically sent to Streetcar. Cars start from £4.95 per hour with the first 30 miles of petrol free. The cars are available 24/7 for rent by the hour, day, week or month.
Pay-as-you-go car clubs are increasing in popularity across major cities in Europe and the US, as they bring a number of environmental, socio-economic and financial benefits. These include:
- reducing the number of cars on the road and consequently cutting carbon dioxide emissions
- reducing the need for private ownership of cars and the financial outlay that entails
- tackling other issues like labour market mobility
Streetcar currently operates in London (where it is market leader with an 85% market share), Southampton and Brighton. The Company has more than 10,000 members, a figure which has tripled each of the last two years and continues to grow at this rate.
Commenting on the investment, Johnny Hewett, Chief Executive of Smedvig said: "The reasons we invested in Streetcar are clear. It is the UK market leader with a strong brand, a proven management team and exceptionally high levels of member satisfaction. We are not surprised that take up for its service has been so rapid and we believe this trend is set to continue."
He added: "In addition to the very considerable convenience and economic benefits it provides to its members, it provides obvious environmental and congestion benefits at a time when we are all increasingly aware of the need to act on those issues."
Andrew Valentine, co-founder of Streetcar added: "With membership growing so rapidly, there was a clear opportunity for an ambitious expansion plan. With Smedvig's involvement we can now put this in place and make Streetcar available to a far wider market whilst further enhancing rather than compromising the customer experience. We are confident we can build on the success we have already achieved and are looking forward to having Johnny and Rob on Board."
For Smedvig, this is their third investment in the transport management arena, with other current portfolio companies in this sector covering vehicle leasing, fleet management, vehicle security and traffic information. Johnny Hewett and Rob Toms from Smedvig have a great deal of experience in this sector and both will be joining the Streetcar Board.
For further information please contact www.smedvigcapital.com or www.streetcar.co.uk:
John Hewett
Smedvig Capital
Tel: 020 7451 2100
Email: jh@smedvigcapital.com
Andrew Valentine
Streetcar
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8099 7314
Email: andrew.valentine@streetcar.co.uk
John West / Clemmie Carr
Tavistock Communications
Tel: 020 7920 3150
Email: ccarr@tavistock.co.uk
Louise Evans
Loop Communications
Tel: +44 (0) 7891 242476
Email: louise@loopcommunications.co.uk
Notes to Editors
Smedvig Capital
Smedvig Capital is a London based private equity firm that has been instrumental in the growth of over 30 businesses since its founding in 1996. Smedvig believes that equity investing should incorporate high levels of involvement and support, working with management on strategy, finance, operational improvements and business development initiatives. The team shares a common background in strategy consulting, with additional experience in operations, start-ups and banking. Other portfolio companies, include IT IS Holdings, now public, the UK leader in provision of traffic information and Tusker direct an innovative car leasing and fleet management business.
Direct investments are usually in UK businesses, from development capital through to small buyouts, equity commitment £2 to £10m. Smedvig Capital is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Streetcar
Streetcar is the UK's biggest pay-as-you-go car club with over 10,000 members. Research shows that Streetcar helps to cut CO2 emissions. During 2007, the company expects to cut emissions in the UK by over 4,000 tons. Furthermore, for every Streetcar vehicle on the road, 28 private vehicles are withdrawn as members choose to not buy or replace their own car.
The scheme is very simple to use: members make their bookings via the internet (www.streetcar.co.uk) and use a remotely activated smartcard held against the windscreen to unlock the door. The keys are in the glove compartment and the member just drives the car away. At the end of the journey, they return the car to the dedicated Streetcar parking space and a record of the journey is automatically sent by SMS to Streetcar HQ.
Care can be hired for £4.95 per hour with the first 30 miles of petrol free. For more information, or to let Streetcar know you would like to see the service in your area, please visit www.streetcar.co.uk
The Manchester office of investment bank Altium has advised London-based car club Streetcar.