More sad news

[doodab]

Eddie Stobart is dead.

BBC News - Haulage magnate Edward Stobart dies, aged 56

[DimPrawn]

Not a great age 56 is it?

And the govt thinks everyone will be working when they're 70.

[EternalOptimist]

Not a great age 56 is it?

And the govt thinks everyone will be working when they're 70.

well articulated DP

[Doggy Styles]

They should never have changed the livery on their lorries. Perhaps he died of a broken heart.

[wurzel]

I think a tribute's in order....

[stek]

April Fool?

[gricerboy]

April Fool?

No but
this most certainly is

[NickFitz]

It isn't Eddie Stobart who's died, it's his son Edward Stobart - he got the haulage bit when the family firm was divvied up, and then ran it into the ground, to the extent that the "Eddie Stobart Fan Club" (i.e. people who were buying Stobart-liveried Dinky toys and mugs off them) was more profitable than the haulage operation in the last couple of years before he sold it off to avoid bankruptcy. The only reason you've seen an "Eddie Stobart" branded lorry on the road since the early '00s is that he flogged off his father's name to cover his own arse financially.

His dad was a hardcore Evangelical Christian, for what it's worth. That's why he insisted that his lorry drivers had to wear ties, despite the fact that neither Jesus nor his Apostles are ever described as wearing ties.

What is it about Evangelical Christians that leads them to believe that what the neighbours might think is a way of discerning God's eternal teachings as to how we should comport ourselves?

[doodab]

It isn't Eddie Stobart who's died, it's his son Edward Stobart - he got the haulage bit when the family firm was divvied up, and then ran it into the ground, to the extent that the "Eddie Stobart Fan Club" (i.e. people who were buying Stobart-liveried Dinky toys and mugs off them) was more profitable than the haulage operation in the last couple of years before he sold it off to avoid bankruptcy. The only reason you've seen an "Eddie Stobart" branded lorry on the road since the early '00s is that he flogged off his father's name to cover his own arse financially.

He deserves a bit more credit than that. It was a small business that no one had heard of when he took over and he ran it successfully for almost 30 years, building the brand into something that is recognized across Europe, with 100s of trucks and £150m turnover. It wasn't until 2001 that the company actually posted a loss. He sold the firm to his brother & his business partner. His brother, who is still running the company, had actually been one of the directors up till that point so probably needs to take some of the blame for things going awry as well.

[Old Greg]

Foul play is widely suspected. Norbert Dentressangle has long been known as a member of the Opus Dei Knights of the Counter-Reformation. Reg Vardy is considering his next move.

Interesting times.