Conviviality confirms taste for Peppermint, reveals latest figures

By Mathew Lyons

Published: 12 November, 2015

Conviviality is to buy London-based bar and events company Peppermint.

Conviviality is to buy London-based bar-and-events company Peppermint.

The deal, for an undisclosed sum, will see Conviviality take a majority stake in the company, while Peppermint continues to operate as an independent business.

Founded in 2003, Peppermint's core business is providing bar and catering services to major live sports events and music festivals. Clients include Live Nation, the Henley Regatta and the Commonwealth Games.

The acquisition will give Conviviality's clients access to a successful stream of outdoor events, and also open up opportunities for multi-channel sponsorship.

Discussions between Matthew Clark and Peppermint had already begin prior to Matthew Clark's acquisition by Conviviality on October 7.

Last year, Matthew Clark took a controlling stake in experiential marketing agency, Elastic.

Diana Hunter, chief executive of Conviviality plc, said: "We are very excited to be offering this great opportunity to any brand that wants to engage consumers in the outdoor event market.

"We believe this new partnership will help justify the ROI for brands at the strategy stage of brand planning, through the development of event campaigns based on unique insight."

Alex Brooke and Adam Hempenstall, founding directors of Peppermint, said: "We're committed to adding value to our clients by offering them tailored business solutions that meet their needs.

"The huge portfolio choice Conviviality plc can provide will only strengthen our offer to our current and prospective customers.

"The vision Conviviality has for the future alongside its independent way of thinking is a perfect fit for us; we're extremely excited about what the future will hold."

Conviviality has also released a trading update for the 27 weeks to November 1, 2015.

Revenues for the group were up 38% year on year from £183 million to £252 million. The figures include revenue from Matthew Clark since its acquisition on October 7.

Excluding Matthew Clark, revenues are up 4.4% to £191 million.

Like-for-like store revenue is still negative at -1.3%, although that represents a small improvement on the -1.7% recorded for the same period last year.

Like-for-like sales at Wine Rack are up 5.3%.

Matthew Clark recorded sales of £61m between the acquisition on October 7, 2015 and November 1, 2015, up from £59m on the same period last year.

It is posting growth of 4% year on year for the 27 weeks to November 1.

Hunter said: "We have had a transformational first half of the year which culminated in the successful acquisition of Matthew Clark.

"It is still early days in our ownership of this business however the integration is progressing well and we are pleased to have gained such a passionate and talented team.

"Our franchisee and retail business has also had a strong start to the year and we will continue to help our franchisees grow their businesses while also working to attract new franchisees to the group."

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