Acquisition
International Greetings PLC
05 June 2007
5 June 2007
INTERNATIONAL GREETINGS PLC
('International Greetings' or 'the Group')
International expansion strategy progresses through European and UK acquisitions
- Notice of results -
International Greetings PLC (AIM: IGR), the leading designer and manufacturer of
greetings products and film and television character based licensed stationery,
announces three acquisitions, Weltec Holding BV, Artex and Pinwheel Limited.
Weltec Holding BV ('Weltec')
Based in Holland, Weltec is a supplier of photo frames, selling primarily to the
German market. Its products will fit well with those of Anchor BV, also based in
Holland, which was acquired by the Group in April 2006. It will provide
International Greetings with new customers and routes to market through which it
can sell its other existing product ranges. For the year to 31 December 2006,
Weltec's unaudited accounts showed a turnover of €7.8 million and an operating
profit of €48,000, excluding amortization of goodwill. It has been acquired for
a consideration of €415,000.
Artex
Artex is based in Zgorzelec, Poland (on the German border near Dresden) and is a
gift wrap supplier to Eastern Europe. It provides International Greetings with
its first sales platform located in Eastern Europe, a geographic region which
has been identified as an important area of future expansion by the Group. In
addition to gift wrap, Artex also sells bags, bows and ribbons. It was acquired
for an initial consideration of €300,000 with additional amounts payable based
on future profitability over five years. For the year to 31 December 2006, Artex
had a turnover of €1 million.
Pinwheel Limited
The Group has acquired the business and assets of Pinwheel Ltd, which owns the
book publishing rights for the Pinwheel, Andromeda and Gullane Children's Book
brands, which sell into the UK and US markets. Pinwheel was acquired from the
administrators by the Group's subsidiary, Alligator Books Limited, for an
initial consideration of £417,000 and a maximum total consideration of up to
£460,000. In the year to 31 March 2006, Pinwheel's unaudited accounts showed
turnover at £4.1 million, of which £2.3 million was derived in the US.
International Greetings also announces that it will report results for the year
to 31 March 2007 on 26 June 2007.
Joint Chief Executive, Nick Fisher, commented: 'These acquisitions underline our
acquisition strategy both in Europe and the UK. Weltec and Artex strengthen our
base in mainland and Eastern Europe, building on the foundations laid by our
European subsidiaries Hoomark and Anchor BV.
'Pinwheel complements Alligator's existing product range and strengthens its
position as a leading children's book publisher in the UK and furthers the
Group's ambitions in the US.
'We are delighted with these additions to the Group and continue to evaluate
additional acquisition opportunities as they arise, reinforcing our position as
the industry consolidator.'
For further information:
Nick Fisher, Joint Chief Executive, International Greetings plc: 01707 630 630
Richard Sunderland, Tavistock Communications: 020 7920 3150
Notes to Editors:
International Greetings PLC is a leading designer and manufacturer of private
label wrapping paper, greetings products and film and television character based
licensed stationery. It currently has over 2,000 employees and produces gift
wrapping paper, accessories, Christmas crackers, greetings cards and other
stationery products.
The Group supplies wrapping paper and gift products to a number of global
retailers and holds licences to produce merchandise for most of the well-known
family characters, including Disney, Shrek and the forthcoming Simpsons Movie.
International Greetings was founded in the UK in 1979 and, in addition to the UK
and Western Europe, has successful operations in the United States, Hong Kong,
China and Latvia. The Company continues to grow its operations in Europe,
through its subsidiaries Hoomark and Anchor BV, both based in the Netherlands,
which supplies a wide assortment of greetings, festive, stationery and
photographic gift products, complementing the Group's other ranges.
International Greetings listed on AIM in 1995 and is capitalised at about
£190 million.
Further information is available at www.internationalgreetings.co.uk
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange