Coleman Milne

What Coleman Milne does

Coleman Milne, founded in 1953 and operating from a dedicated design and manufacturing facility in Westhoughton, Bolton, is the UK's specialist manufacturer of ceremonial vehicles for the funeral industry. The company produces three core product ranges — the Mercedes Range (E-Class-based hearses and limousines, including the Mercedes 214 platform with mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and petrol/diesel powertrains), the Etive Collection (the UK's first all-electric hearse and limousine range built on the Ford Mach-E platform, launched 2022), and the Removal Range (specialist transport vehicles with Surelift motorised, fixed, and Z-Fold folding deck configurations). Vehicles are engineered using OEM design techniques, CNC-machined 1:1 scale models, and CAD software, with Whole Vehicle Type Approval, ISO9001:2008 quality certification, and ISO 9606-1:2017 welding certification underpinning manufacturing standards.

The company operates a direct-to-customer go-to-market model through a UK-wide team of regional sales managers (covering Scotland & Northern Ireland, Central/Southern England & South Wales, and North England, plus a National Sales Manager and Business Development Manager), supplemented by on-site test drives and nationwide vehicle delivery. Pricing for new vehicles is bespoke and quote-based; the approved used vehicle programme prices between approximately £36,990 and £135,000 with 3-12 month warranties, while new Mercedes hearses and limousines carry a 3-year/60,000-mile warranty covering both base vehicle and conversion. Revenue is generated across six streams: new vehicle sales, used vehicle sales, parts and accessories, emergency vehicle hire, repair and maintenance (including 48-hour field service response), and ceramic paint/interior protection.

Coleman Milne is a privately held subsidiary of the Woodall Nicholson Group (a diversified specialist vehicle manufacturing group also encompassing Mellor, Treka, VCS Police & Special Projects, and Promech Engineering, with John Randerson serving as Group CEO). The customer base is composed primarily of independent UK funeral directors across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, with named customers spanning multi-generational family firms (Bennetts, James Henry, Arthur W. Bryant) and enterprise-class operators (Clydebank Co-operative Society). In April 2026 the company acquired the IP and selected manufacturing assets of Eagle Specialist Vehicles following Eagle's administration, with stated intent to extend into the prestige passenger transport vertical under the Nicholson brand, alongside continued investment in all-electric and hybrid product lines.

Name

Coleman Milne

Legal name

Coleman Milne

Website

https://coleman-milne.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1953

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Coleman Milne, founded 1953 in Bolton, UK, manufactures hearses, limousines, and removal vehicles for funeral directors across the UK and Europe. A subsidiary of Woodall Nicholson Group, it offers the broadest European ceremonial vehicle range including the UK's first all-electric hearse platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Funeral & Ceremonial Vehicle Manufacturing

NAICS

Motor Vehicle Seating and Interior Trim Manufacturing (33636)

SIC

Motor Vehicles & Passenger Car Bodies (3711), Motor Vehicle Parts & Accessories (3714)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty Vehicle Body Manufacturing (Emergency/Military/Mobile Clinics) (IMACAGAD)

Keywords

• Ceremonial vehicle manufacturing
• Funeral hearse manufacturing
• Limousine manufacturing
• Removal vehicle manufacturing
• Funeral industry vehicles

Headquarters

HQ city

Bolton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. New Vehicle Sales: Sale of new hearses, limousines, and removal vehicles across Mercedes, Etive (electric), and Removal Ranges. Vehicles built to order with customer-specified finishes. 3-year/60,000 mile warranty included.
2. Used Vehicle Sales: Pre-owned hearses and limousines from Mercedes, Ford, Jaguar, Vauxhall and other manufacturers. Refurbished to high standards with 3 to 12 month warranties depending on vehicle age.
3. Parts and Accessories: Genuine parts and accessories for current and legacy ceremonial vehicles including Mercedes, Jaguar, Ford, and removal vehicle parts. Coffin stops, tailgates, and deck furniture.
4. Vehicle Hire: Short to medium-term hire fleet of hearses and limousines for funeral directors during accident recovery or off-road repairs. Insurance liaison service included.
5. Repair and Maintenance: Full repair, servicing and approval guidance through factory-trained field service engineers and nationwide service centre network. 48-hour response time for time-critical issues.
6. Ceramic Paint and Interior Protection: Specialised ceramic coat paint protection using glasscoat polysilazane coating for exterior surfaces, alloy wheels, glass, plastic, and interior leather and cloth trim protection.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Coleman Milne designs, manufactures, and sells ceremonial vehicles for the funeral industry, including hearses, limousines, and removal vehicles. The company offers three core product ranges (Mercedes E-Class based, Etive all-electric on Ford Mach-E, and Removal Range), plus approved used vehicles, parts, emergency hire, ceramic protection, and nationwide aftercare support. Customers are primarily UK funeral directors requiring built-to-order vehicles with custom finishes.

Product overview

Coleman Milne is Europe's foremost ceremonial vehicle manufacturer offering a portfolio of hearses, limousines, and removal vehicles. The product lineup comprises three core ranges: the Mercedes Range (traditional and hybrid-powered hearses and limousines built on Mercedes-Benz E-Class), the Etive Collection (the UK's first all-electric ceremonial vehicles on Ford Mach-E), and the Removal Range (specialist transport vehicles with various deck configurations). The company also supports its vehicles through comprehensive aftercare services including parts supply, emergency hire, ceramic protection, field service engineers, and repair/maintenance support. Additionally, Coleman Milne sells approved pre-owned vehicles.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Etive Collection: All-electric hearse and limousine range based on Ford Mach-E platform, the UK's first all-electric ceremonial vehicle fleet
• Mercedes Range
• Removal Range

Products and services

• Mercedes Range Premium ceremonial vehicle range built on the Mercedes-Benz E-Class platform, including hearses and limousines in 3-bearer and 2-bearer configurations with mild hybrid petrol/diesel and plug-in hybrid powertrain options. Targeted at funeral directors.
• Etive Collection The UK's first all-electric hearse and limousine range built on the Ford Mach-E all-electric powertrain, offering zero-emission operation, noiseless performance, approximately 200-mile range, and 3.5-hour wall box charging with an 8-year battery warranty.
• Removal Range Complete range of funeral removal vehicles including Surelift motorised dual-height deck, fixed deck, and Z Fold folding deck configurations. Built on Ford, Vauxhall, Mercedes, Peugeot, and Renault base vehicles for coffin and stretcher transport.
• Used Vehicles Pre-owned hearses and limousines from Mercedes, Ford, Jaguar, Vauxhall, Volvo, and Rolls-Royce, refurbished to high standards and sold with 3 to 12 months warranty depending on age.
• Emergency Vehicle Hire Short to medium-term hire fleet of hearses and limousines for funeral directors during accident recovery or off-road repairs, with insurance liaison service included.
• Repair and Maintenance Full repair, servicing, and approval guidance for all Coleman Milne vehicles through factory-trained field service engineers and a nationwide service centre network with 48-hour response time.
• Field Service Engineer Factory-trained field engineers providing on-site repairs across the UK with the aim of attending time-critical issues within 48 hours using a well-stocked parts inventory.
• Ceramic Paint and Interior Protection

Named customers9 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered strategic and core.

• Eagle Specialist Vehicles (Acquired)strategicOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 April 2026Coleman Milne (Castilian 1 Ltd) acquired intellectual property and selected assets of Eagle Specialist Vehicles following their administration. Plans to review product portfolio and potentially introduce new luxury models for funeral and prestige passenger transport sectors under Nicholson brand.
• Mercedes-BenzcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFour decades of partnership with Mercedes-Benz for ceremonial vehicle conversions. Coleman Milne is the market expert for Mercedes-Benz funeral vehicles, offering latest AMG Line Mild Hybrid and Plug-in Hybrid Petrol technology. Vehicles include Mercedes E-Class based hearses and limousines with comprehensive warranty coverage.
• FordcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFord Mach-E all-electric powertrain used as basis for Etive Collection, UK's first all-electric hearse and limousine range. Ford provides base vehicle with full Type Approval, covered by Ford warranty alongside Coleman Milne's own warranty.
• Woodall Nicholson GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent company of Coleman Milne. Part of group of specialist vehicle manufacturers including Woodall Nicholson, Mellor, Treka, VCS Police & Special Projects, and Promech Engineering. Group CEO John Randerson oversees Coleman Milne operations.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• REV Group: US-listed specialty vehicle manufacturer producing ambulances, fire trucks, RVs, and funeral vehicles through multiple brands. REV Group represents a broader incumbent that operates in the specialty vehicle space with significantly greater scale and capital resources than Coleman Milne.
• Cadillac Professional Vehicles: General Motors' specialty vehicle division that produces professional vehicles including hearses built on Cadillac platforms for the North American market. As part of a major OEM, it represents a well-capitalized incumbent with the potential to expand into electric funeral vehicles.

Others

• Mellor: UK-based sister company within the Woodall Nicholson Group, specializing in accessible minibuses and community transport vehicles. Mellor shares the same parent group, manufacturing facilities ecosystem, and engineering capabilities, providing a benchmark for specialty vehicle operations under the same corporate umbrella.
• Woodall Nicholson Group: Diversified parent group of Coleman Milne that includes Woodall Nicholson, Mellor, Treka, VCS Police & Special Projects, and Promech Engineering. The group provides operational scale, shared engineering resources, and capital access that supports Coleman Milne's market position.

Regional players

• S&S Coach Company: US funeral vehicle and limousine manufacturer producing hearses and other specialty vehicles. S&S Coach competes in the same product category as Coleman Milne but serves the North American funeral market rather than the UK and Europe.
• Federal Coach: US-based funeral vehicle manufacturer and limousine converter. Federal Coach produces hearses, limousines, and specialty vehicles for the North American market, making it a directly comparable peer in terms of product offering though operating in a different geographic market.

Direct peers

• Carrozzeria Barbi: Italian specialist coachbuilder focused on hearses and funeral vehicles. Barbi produces ceremonial vehicles primarily on Mercedes-Benz platforms and competes directly with Coleman Milne in the premium end of the European funeral vehicle market.
• Binz: German hearse and funeral vehicle manufacturer with the longest heritage in Europe. Binz produces hearses, limousines, and removal vehicles on Mercedes-Benz platforms and represents Coleman Milne's most direct continental European competitor with overlapping product range and customer base.
• Pilato: Greek funeral vehicle manufacturer with growing European presence. Pilato produces hearses and limousines on multiple OEM platforms and competes with Coleman Milne for European funeral director customers, particularly in Southern and Eastern European markets.
• Eagle Specialist Vehicles: Former UK direct competitor that produced Jaguar-based hearses and limousines before entering administration in 2026. Coleman Milne acquired Eagle's IP and selected assets in April 2026, effectively absorbing the brand and product portfolio, with plans to relaunch under the Nicholson brand.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/colemanmilne
• Facebookfacebook.com/colemanmilne
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coleman-milne

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Coleman Milne