Applegreen PLC has today confirmed the completion of the transaction to acquire a majority shareholding in Welcome Break, following the first announcement of the sale in August.
The current Welcome Break CEO, Robbie Bell (pictured), will be departing the business as Applegreen seeks to leverage its existing management resources to lead the business following completion.
John Diviney, as Managing Director of Applegreen’s UK operations will take over management responsibility for Welcome Break, reporting to Applegreen’s COO Joe Barrett as Chief Operating Officer of the group.
Bell will leave the group on 31 December 2018, in the interim helping to handover responsibilities to Diviney.
Applegreen CEO, Bob Etchingham said, ‘We are grateful to Robbie for his support during the transaction process. He has been instrumental in providing continuity and stability to the Welcome Break business throughout this period. We wish him well with his future career and acknowledge his progressive leadership and change management abilities’.
Bell said, ‘The Welcome Break team should be proud of the business they have helped to build over many years. I look forward to seeing the business achieve further success under an ownership that has years of experience in the sector.’