8 December 2023
By David Lynch
daivd@TheCork.ie
18 branded ‘First Stop’ and ‘Fast Fit’ depoits located in Cork as well as Dublin, Galway, Drogheda, Waterford and Wexford are involved in the transaction
Atlas Autoservice, a leading tyre and car servicing group, today announced a significant expansion of its business with the acquisition of Bridgestone’s 18 Irish retail depots.
The 18 Bridgestone depots, operating under the ‘First Stop’ and ‘Fast Fit’ brands, will come together with Atlas Autoservice’s existing 9 outlets to create the largest chain of tyre and car servicing outlets in Dublin.
The 18 First Stop and Fast Fit depots located in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Drogheda, Waterford and Wexford will continue to operate under their existing brand names at this time.
The acquisition will more than double the number of employees at the tyre and car servicing group and will significantly strengthen its position in the automotive aftermarket in the Dublin area while also adding regional depots to the Group for the first time. The deal is a major step toward Atlas Autoservice achieving its ambition of becoming the number one choice for motorists in Ireland, enhancing its ability to provide exceptional service and support to motorists in Dublin and in other regional areas.
Commenting on today’s news Chloe McKillen, Managing Director, Atlas Autoservice, said:
“The acquisition of Bridgestone’s 18 depots in Ireland facilitates our ambition to become the number one choice for Irish motorists across the country.
“This expansion will more than double the size of our family business and enable our growing team to provide the highest quality of service to new and existing customers in Dublin and other cities and towns across Ireland.
“Our focus has been, and will always be, on our people and we believe that this deal presents great opportunities for the growth and development of our team in the years ahead.
“The chain of depots we are acquiring includes several original DC Exhaust sites. This was a business founded by my grandfather in the 1970s, so there is a deep sense of pride in bringing this business back under family ownership and into the Atlas Group.”
She continued: “We are delighted to cement our strong relationship with Bridgestone by entering into a partnership which will allow us to sell its premium tyres through our network of 27 depots and grow its market share in the years to come.
“Through our continued focus on our people, our customer service and our value, we look forward to this expansion and to serving more Irish motorists, every day.”
Davy Corporate Finance is acting as financial advisor to Bridgestone and Eversheds Sutherland is its legal counsel. DLT is acting as financial advisor to Atlas with Gartlan Furey and Philip Lee providing legal counsel.
About Atlas Autoservice
Atlas Autoservice is Ireland’s leading tyre and car servicing group. The McKillen family have been in the industry for 3 generations, spanning their business in the motor trade over six decades. With depots across Dublin, the Group strives to provide a premium bumper to bumper car service, focusing on quality parts, value for money, honest work, all delivered by a qualified, efficient and friendly team. Atlas Autoservice currently employ more than 100 people across its 9 locations and its team members are its number one focus. The Group’s goal is to ensure that customer vehicles will perform at the very highest level when they drive out of the Company’s garages, every single day.