REG - Kitwave Group PLC - Acquisition of Total Foodservice Solutions Limited

KitwaveAnnouncement

28/03/2024 07:15

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RNS Number : 6687I  Kitwave Group PLC  28 March 2024

28 March 2024

Kitwave Group plc

 

("Kitwave", the "Group" or the "Company")

 

Acquisition of Total Foodservice Solutions Limited

 

Kitwave Group plc (AIM: KITW), the delivered wholesale business, is pleased to
announce that the Group has acquired the entire issued share capital of Total
Foodservice Solutions Limited ("Total Foodservice"), a leading independent
food wholesaler in the North of England (the "Acquisition"). The total gross
consideration payable for the Acquisition is £21.0 million in cash and has
been funded from the Group's current banking facilities.

 

Established over 130 years ago, Total Foodservice delivers wholesale catering
supplies of around 4,000 product lines including chilled, frozen and ambient
food, non-food and cleaning products. Total Foodservice's depots are located
in Clitheroe, Lancashire and Huddersfield, Yorkshire with customers including
licensed trade and restaurants, coffee shops and sandwich bars, schools and
universities and the care industry across the North of England.

 

Total Foodservice reported an audited turnover of £25.4 million, profit
before tax of £2.0 million and the balance sheet had net assets of £8.5
million for the financial year ended 30 April 2023. The acquired balance sheet
includes c.£4.0 million of cash and freehold property with a book value of
£2.1 million. The net cash outflow from the Group as a result of the
consideration payable and the cash acquired is c.£17.0 million. The Board
believes that the Acquisition will be immediately earnings enhancing after
adding back costs relating to the transaction.

 

The Acquisition will be incorporated into Kitwave's existing Foodservice
division which currently comprises the trading operations of David Miller
Frozen Foods Limited, M. J. Baker Foodservice Limited, Westcountry Food
Holdings Limited and H.B. Clark & Co. (Successors) Limited.

 

Commenting on the Acquisition, Ben Maxted, Chief Executive Officer of Kitwave,
said:

 

"We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Total Foodservice, which is a
one-stop shop for wholesale commercial catering supplies and enables us to
further expand our product range offering across the North of England and in
particular Yorkshire and the North West, complementing our existing
foodservice offering.

 

"Total Foodservice is a well-established business in the catering industry and
we look forward to welcoming its team to Kitwave and integrating the business
into our Foodservice division.

 

"This acquisition is in line with Kitwave's growth strategy, and we will
continue to seek to identify further opportunities in the UK's highly
fragmented wholesale market to deliver further value to the Group and its
shareholders."

 

- Ends-

 

For further information please contact:

 Kitwave Group plc                                    Tel: +44 (0) 191 259 2277

 Ben Maxted, Chief Executive Officer

 David Brind, Chief Financial Officer

 www.kitwave.co.uk (http://www.kitwave.co.uk/)
 Canaccord Genuity Limited                            Tel: +44 (0) 20 7523 8150

(Nominated Adviser and Sole Broker)

 Bobbie Hilliam

 Alex Orr
 Yellow Jersey PR                                     Tel: +44 (0) 20 3004 9512

(Financial media and PR)

 Sarah Hollins

 Shivantha Thambirajah

 Bessie Elliot

 

Company Overview

Founded in 1987, following the acquisition of a single-site confectionery
wholesale business based in North Shields, United Kingdom, Kitwave is a
delivered wholesale business, specialising in selling and delivering impulse
products, frozen, chilled and fresh foods, alcohol, groceries and tobacco to
approximately 42,000, mainly independent, customers.

 

With a network of 30 depots, Kitwave is able to support delivery throughout
the UK to a diverse customer base, which includes independent convenience
retailers, leisure outlets, vending machine operators, foodservice providers
and other wholesalers, as well as leading national retailers.

 

The Group's growth to date has been achieved both organically and through a
strategy of acquiring smaller, predominantly family-owned, complementary
businesses in the fragmented UK grocery and foodservice wholesale market.

 

Kitwave Group plc was admitted to trading on AIM of the London Stock Exchange
in May 2021.

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of article 7 of
the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014 as amended by regulation 11 of the
Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019/310. With the publication
of this announcement, this information is now considered to be in the public
domain.

 

 

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