Little Moons has borrowed another £5m from its shareholders, having breached its loan terms shortly after closing its Kettering factory, The Grocer can reveal.
Accounts filed at Companies House show that Little Moons defaulted on its loan terms in December 2024, having confirmed it was closing its Kettering site in the previous month.
Subsequently, the company entered discussions with both its lenders, and last month agreed to reset its agreements, securing a further £5m in funding from its shareholders, the accounts show.
The short-lived Kettering factory, which opened in early 2024, was originally intended to become the main manufacturing hub for Little Moons. The business planned to close its two London factories, a 20,000 sq ft factory in Park Royal (which opened in 2020) and the original site in Wembley, to keep up with soaring demand for its frozen treats.
However, after Little Moons undertook a review to ensure a “stable and profitable future” for the business, it u-turned, deciding to close the facility and consolidate all manufacturing back into its Park Royal and Wembley sites.
While Little Moons did not confirm how many staff would be affected by the Kettering factory closure, the Northamptonshire Telegraph reported that up to 200 jobs were at risk.
Meanwhile, Little Moons’ newly filed accounts show that total sales hit £53.4m in the year to 29 December 2023, down from £64.5m on the previous 18 months, which means revenue was up by almost a quarter on a comparative basis.
However, pre-tax profits slumped to just £7.0k, from to £279.9k in the 18 months to 30 December 2022 – or roughly £186.6k across a comparative timeframe.
Global growth
Total sales across the UK and Continental Europe slipped from £60.7m to £45.8m in 2023, but this represents a modest growth over 12 months. Meanwhile, rest of the world sales rocketed to £7.6m in 2023, from £3.8m in 2022.
“Little Moons continues to grow, as more and more people in the 36 markets we’re now sold in are introduced to our snackable gelato and cheesecake bites,” Joanna Allen, CEO of the mochi ice cream maker, told The Grocer.
“As publicised, we made the difficult decision to close our Kettering production facility in the last quarter of 2024 and, given the costs associated, we received additional long-term funding from our shareholders, while simultaneously renegotiating terms with our lenders, with whom we continue to enjoy a strong and positive relationship.
“Looking forward, the business is on solid footing to continue blazing a trail for frozen snacking, and we’ll be investing in marketing in the UK, Germany, France, Australia and beyond in 2025 to enable that,” Allen added.
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