Yahoo Finance Hut Group seals more than £300m worth of New Year deals
Online health and beauty retailer The Hut Group splashed more than £300m on a trio of companies it said were expected to “significantly accelerate” its expansion plans.
The Hut Group, which runs websites selling brands including Myprotein and Glossybox, said it had bought US skincare rival Dermstore from retailer Target for $350m (£260m) in cash. The deal would add around £135m to its revenue for 2021.
The Hut Group also acquired British nutrition firms Claremont and Berryman’s for a combined £59.5m, boosting revenues by an expected £15m next year.
Matthew Moulding, chief executive of The Hut Group, said being able to make such investments had been a “key driver behind the decision to list THG on the London Stock Exchange” in September.
It had been the London's biggest listing in seven years, turning Mr Moulding, a former pub dish washer, into a billionaire and resulting in scores of employees becoming millionaires.
The Hut Group was founded in 2004 as a white-label e-commerce services provider, but shifted into the health and beauty market, and is now among the UK's largest listed companies.
Investor appetite for the company has been robust since its float, with shares up more than a quarter over the past few months. The Hut Group is now worth more than £7bn.
The takeover of Dermstore is subject to regulatory approval from US authorities, expected in late January.
The Manchester-based company has experienced huge demand in 2020, and is expecting revenues to come in between £1.48bn and £1.52bn, having hiked its guidance in October.
In the third quarter, sales were up almost 40pc on last year at £378.1m, as Britons turned to online stores to buy vitamin and hair dye products.
