Wholesaler Kitwave saw revenue rise 10% last year after it acquired several businesses to try and further its growth.
The AIM-listed business completed the purchase of Creed Foodservice for £60m in September, having already bought Total Foodservice and Wilds of Oldham earlier in the year. The company has now bought 14 companies since 2011.
It meant its turnover hit £663.7m in the year to 31 October. Like-for-like sales were up 5%.
“Kitwave has delivered another strong full-year performance. We have met full-year market expectations, achieved organic growth and expanded our operations, particularly in our foodservice division,” said CEO Ben Maxted.
“The UK wholesale market remains highly fragmented, which the board believes will continue to present the group with opportunities to capture further market share,” he added.
Kitwave’s foodservice division performed particularly strongly with revenue up 25.2% after it moved operations out of buying group Unitas. This growth was largely driven by its latest acquisitions, although like-for-like sales still grew 7.8%. Sales in its retail business were up 3.9%.
This year, the company brought in new warehouse technology, a new state-of-the-art storage and delivery facility in the south west, plus the three acquisitions to boost its scale, Maxted said.
Total Foodservice cost £21m while Wilds of Oldham was £2.7m.
Kitwave estimates changes to employers’ National Insurance and minimum wage will add around £2m to its costs, but is confident it can mitigate these through efficiencies and other savings.
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