Entrepreneur Mike Woods has completed the management buyout of the food company he set up in 2009 after two of his children were diagnosed with severe nut allergies.
Caerphilly-based Just Love Food Company provides nut-free, vegan, gluten and milk-free cakes to the big four supermarkets in Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons.
With a £750,000 loan and equity funding package provided by the Development Bank of Wales, Mr Woods 56, has been able to buyout existing shareholders and take back control of his company, with the Development Bank taking a 30% equity stake.
Managing director Mr Woods has been joined by three new private investors with a combined equity stake of 22% stake. George Adams, Chris Smith and Tom Carroll, bring with them a wealth of experience – with Mr Smith and Mr Adams previously being managing director and chairman respectively of Marshfield Bakery. Mr Carroll is a former chief operating officer at Unilever.
The company – which has a turnover of £3.8m and employs 70 people – has recently launched a caterpillar cake called Archie which is suitable for vegans.
The board will be chaired by Mr Adams, who is currently chair of Rave Coffee and Banner, a school uniform business. He said: “Our vision is to be the most trusted, innovative and inclusive celebration cake brand with a business that benefits our team, customers and the community. Mike’s original insight, born out of personal experience coupled with the support of the Development Bank of Wales, means that we have all the ingredients necessary for the next stage of the journey. It’s a recipe for success.”
After finding it frustrating not being able to bring cakes home for his young family, in 2009 Mr Woods used his skills and experience of working in the food industry to change things – producing the first celebration cakes on supermarket shelves in the 海角视频 to clearly state they were nut-free in 2010.
He said: “When my daughter Danika was first diagnosed with a severe nut allergy at four years old, times were different. There was a lot of ignorance and less awareness about allergies, and it was difficult. As a family we were all tested, and six months later, we found out that my son Rourke had the same reaction.”
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“Over time, I started receiving letters from parents across the country asking us to produce gluten-free and dairy-free cakes for their children,” said Mike. “Having watched Danika being excluded from other children’s birthday parties because of her nut allergy, it was important to me to produce more cakes that included everyone, so we began adding to our range.”
The family-run business – including daughter Danika who works as marketing manager – is now looking forward to a bright future.
Mr Woods, who was introduced to the Development Bank by Frank Holmes at Gambit Corporate Finance, said: “The combined support of Gambit and the Development Bank has been instrumental as we focus on restructuring the business. We’ve got an exciting future. The mix of equity and loan from the Development Bank of Wales means that we’ve got ongoing support and counsel, as well as the working capital to deliver our vision to be the most inclusive celebration cake brand.”
The £25m Wales Management Succession Fund is financed by the Welsh Government and Clwyd Pension Fund. Loans and equity investments between £500,000 and £3m are available for management teams seeking to own and run their business with terms range between one and seven years.
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Senior Investment executive Steve Galvin and investment executive Ruby Harcombe completed the deal for the Development Bank.
Mr Harcombe said: “Just Love Food Company is a pioneering manufacturer of dietary and lifestyle-specific products with an excellent shelf-presence with the leading supermarkets. As developers of first-to-market celebration cakes, they’re meeting the requirements of the modern consumer at a time when we are all increasingly conscious of nutrition and healthy living.
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“Mike and the team have got some really exciting growth plans that we’ll be facilitating with the mix of funding that we have provided from our Wales Management Succession Fund. We’re looking forward to working alongside the team and our co-investors as industry specialists.”
Berry Smith acted for Just Love Food Company and Blake Morgan for the Development Bank of Wales.