Maggie Beer sells out for $25 million

Premium food brands producer, Longtable Group (ASX: LON) has completed its takeover of 100 per cent of Maggie Beer Products from the South Australian cook and food entrepreneur, Maggie Beer for a total consideration of $25 million.

The company, which bought an initial 48 per cent of the business for $15 million in 2016, said in an announcement that
it had paid $10 million to take control following three years of restructuring.

The company has been professionally managed in that time which was instrumental in boosting profits from $1.3 million to between $1.7 and $1.9 million.

New products such as cheeses and stocks helped boost sales while overhead costs were cut by $2 million a year despite growth.

Maggie Beer has been making a range of premium products including fruit pastes and jams, pate, verjuice, olive oils, vinaigrettes and no alcohol wines from her farm base in the Barossa Valley for 40 years.

Now the celebrity chef, who is 74, will devote more time to the ‘things she loves’, including working on her garden.

Longtable will continue to use her name as brand for her products, and plans to extend product offerings and increase market penetration.

Longtable has been assembling a string of quality food brands, including Paris Creek Farms bio-organic dairy and Saint David Dairy, achieving savings by combining sales teams and warehousing.

Maggie Beer and husband David received $8.5 million in cash and $1.5 million in Longtable shares and a convertible note in consideration for the latest transaction.

Picture: Longtable Group

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