Wedderspoon Organic Owner Florenz Strikes Deal To Buy Fellow Honey Firm Comvita 

Credit: Ho Su A Bi/Shutterstock.

New Zealand’s Comvita has agreed to a takeover bid from chap Mānuka chromatic supplier Florenz.

Florenz, which owns chromatic marque Wedderspoon Organic, has offered NZ$0.8 ($0.48) a stock for Comvita.

In a stock-exchange filing coming (18 August), Comvita said its committee “unanimously” recommended shareholders ballot successful favour of nan bid.

The connection represents a 67% premium to Comvita’s closing stock value connected 15 August, values nan company’s equity astatine astir NZ$56m and giving it an endeavor worth of astir NZ$119m.  

“Recent years person been challenging for Comvita and its shareholders, pinch sustained assemblage pressures, softer marketplace conditions and nan demands of a analyzable turnaround weighing connected performance,” Comvita chair Bridget Coates said.

“Comvita has faced ongoing unit from structural changes successful nan Mānuka chromatic sector, which continues to look oversupply, value and request volatility, and aggravated competition, including online.

Florenz is simply a subsidiary of Christchurch-based Masthead Limited and was group up to create New Zealand’s largest wellness and wellness export business.

Its portfolio besides includes supplements exporter Xtend-Life and sports-nutrition marque 2before Performance Nutrition.

Coates added: “The situation is fragmented, pinch respective participants nether financial strain. Industry dynamics require consolidation astatine gait but assemblage activity demands superior strength, standard and speed, which are not disposable to Comvita nether its existent superior structure.”

In June, Comvita has appointed Karl Gradon, a erstwhile CEO of a rival Manuka chromatic producer, as its caller main executive. From December 2015 to June 2018, he was CEO of New Zealand Mānuka Group. More recently, he was CEO of New Zealand dairy processor Miraka for 3 years up to this April.

The institution has focused connected repositioning itself arsenic a premium brand, investing successful marketing, distribution, proviso information and technological credibility.  

Coates said: “Significant superior was invested successful marque equity, distribution reach, proviso information and technological credibility to position Comvita for this opportunity. A number of these investments did not meet their objectives aliases present expected returns. In parallel, marketplace maturation did not materialise astatine nan expected pace, title intensified and oversupply created further headwinds, reducing profitability.

“Comvita has taken urgent steps to trim costs, simplify operations, and protect semipermanent marque spot – which are delivering early results – and nan marque remains nan class leader successful cardinal markets. However, these factors unsocial are not capable to fortify nan equilibrium expanse aliases position nan business for semipermanent sustainability.”

June besides saw Comvita pass it could book a “material” impairment complaint for nan 2025 financial year, which closed astatine nan extremity of nan month.

Commenting connected trading conditions Coates said coming they “remained challenging”, pinch nan group expecting a “significant loss” arsenic good arsenic a “material write-down” of nett assets arsenic a consequence of impairment tests against inventories.

She added: “Comvita’s lenders are providing short-term accommodation but person signalled that a longer-term solution – done indebtedness repayment aliases imaginable strategical transactions – is required.”

Comvita will coming its full-year results connected 29 August.