Loch Fyne Oysters has ended an 18-month search for a base in the south of England with the purchase of Surrey-based Simson's Fisheries.

Loch Fyne Oysters has ended an 18-month search for a base in the south of England with the purchase of Surrey-based Simson's Fisheries.

The move will give the company - which until now has focused on selling oysters and mussels from its own farms as well as other locally-caught fish such as langoustines - access to a wider range of white and wet fish as well as a distribution base in the south-east of England, close to many of its customers.

Simson's buys-in fish caught off the south coast of England and as far afield as southern Europe.

The pairing of the 30-year-old previously family-owned Simson's, which sells to Harrods food hall, and Loch Fyne Oysters, which has a contract with Selfridges, also gives Loch Fyne Oysters access to a new customer base.

Simson's directors Tim Lucas and Richard Organ are to stay on with their 45 staff members as part of the terms of the sale, for an undisclosed amount, which was funded through a finance package from Bank of Scotland.

They will oversee the southern business and report to Loch Fyne Oysters' managing director Bruce Davidson.

He said: "It gives us access to more species. It also gets us closer to our customers. Loch Fyne is beautiful but it is not the most accessible place."

He said the company would be able to deliver products in bulk down to Simson's where it will be packaged up for customers, most notably the Loch Fyne restaurant chain, which was spun out in 1998 and is now owned by brewer Greene King.

This simplified supply chain should cut carbon emissions and packaging, the company said.

The purchase is the end of an 18-month search by Loch Fyne Oysters for a base in the south of England. While the original plan was for the company to set up its own, Davidson said the purchase gave the company access to experienced workers without having to start from scratch. He added that the Simson's brand is also well respected in the market.

Davidson acknowledged that employee-owned Loch Fyne Oysters was seeing some signs of a consumer slowdown.

"The top restaurants in London are busy and will always be busy. The Loch Fyne restaurants are still seeing good footfall but a drop in terms of consumer spending."

He said there were signs of people trading down, for instance choosing a cheaper fish dish, and noted that the company was seeing more sales of dishes such as fish cakes and kedgeree.