Investee Company Name: McArdle Skeath
Investment Amount: €11.1m
Industry: Supply Chain Management/Specialised Warehousing
Reason for Investment: Growth and expansion capital
McArdle Skeath, owned and operated by the McArdle family, has been operating as a supply chain management business for the past 50 years. The Company originally operated from a 13-acre site near Inniskeen, Co. Louth with a total storage capacity of 22,000 pallets. The Company provides transport, warehousing and value added services to some of Ireland’s largest food ingredient and pharmaceutical companies. Due to recent growth the Company’s facility in Inniskeen reached full capacity and the opportunity to allow for longer-term growth of the Company was identified.
The Goodbody EIIS Funds have invested €11.1m to date over three tranches from the 2016, 2017 and 2018 Funds. The funding was used to support the development of their 21 acre next-generation supply chain management facility. An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar T.D. opened the new McArdle Skeath transport depot in Hollystown, Dublin 15 on Friday 15 June 2018. In his speech on the day Varadkar stated that “Technology, as is so often the case, is transforming this industry. The Transport, Logistics and Distribution sectors are facing new disruptions as digitisation takes hold and clients’ needs change”, he recognised that “[McArdle Skeath’s] achievement is the way [they] have embraced digital technology to meet supply chain management challenges” and added “It is wonderful to see this kind of adaptable innovation from an indigenous Irish company.”
The new facility in Hollystown allows McArdle Skeath to leverage their well respected name in the areas of transportation, refrigeration, storage and value added services, allowing a move into the area of temperature controlled storage. In the face of Brexit it is also a strategic move that enables them to serve a wider client base expanding their geographical reach into the south of the country.
“We’re delighted to make this investment that will enable McArdle Skeath to significantly grow their presence in the key food and pharmaceutical markets,” said Stephen McGivern, Partner, Baker Tilly. “When we first met the McArdle family we were instantly struck by the knowledge and thoroughness of the team that has been developed over five decades and which has learned to adapt and grow to meet the needs of its customers. They have developed deep relationships over time which now gives them a fantastic platform for growth over the next decade.”
