Vintage Wine Estates files for bankruptcy, plans to delist stock
Vintage Wine Estates (VWE), a major US wine group, has filed for bankruptcy and plans to delist its common stock after failing to pay off US$60.5m in debt.
The company intends to sell “all or substantially all” of its assets and has received “multiple preliminary indications of interest” from buyers. This follows various attempts to improve its financial situation, including job cuts in May and the sale of Cosentino Winery to Gene Wines for $10.5m last week.
In a stock exchange filing on 24 July, VWE stated it faced “negative financial headwinds” that severely impacted its liquidity. It explored several solutions, with asset monetisation deemed the most viable path to maximise value. The decision to file for chapter 11 reorganisation was made after a thorough evaluation of the company’s financial state and was deemed in the best interests of the company and its stakeholders. VWE said commercial operations would largely continue as usual during the restructuring process.
In January, VWE announced a 15% reduction in headcount to save $7.1m, after already cutting its workforce by 7% between March and October 2023. In March, it attracted bids for its direct-to-consumer unit and some production services operations in an effort to refocus.
CEO Seth Kaufman, appointed last July, expressed optimism about monetising non-core businesses and other assets to pay down debt and increase liquidity. VWE was founded in 2007 by Pat Roney, who aimed to unite his fine-wine brand Girard and direct-to-consumer brand Windsor Vineyards. Roney served as CEO until February 2023 and remains on the board of directors.
In the six months to 31 December, VWE reported net revenue of $141.3m, down from $156.5m the previous year, with net losses of $64.4m, an improvement on the $127.6 million losses recorded in the same period the previous year. As of 31 December, it had $21.4m in cash and $305min debt.
In its last full financial year, which ended in June 2023, VWE recorded losses of nearly $189m on net revenue of $189.4m.
Since going public in 2020, VWE has made several acquisitions, including Kunde Family Wines, Vinesse Wines, Sommelier Company and Ace Premium Craft Ciders. Its portfolio includes wineries in Napa, Sonoma, California’s Central Coast, Oregon and Washington State, with brands such as Kunde Family Wines, Laetitia Vineyard & Winery, Layer Cake Wines and Firesteed.
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