Clipper tea owner gets £76m pay day after KP Snacks deal boosts profit
The owner of tea brand Clipper is in line for a huge pay day after the sale of Whole Earth to KP Snacks saw a massive spike in profit.
Kallo Foods, whose products also include Kallo and Mrs Crimbles, sold the brand towards the end of 2024 for a then-undisclosed sum.
New accounts have now revealed the group’s pre-tax profit swelled from £6.9m to £71.6m in 2024 because of the deal.
Also as a result, the group is to issue a huge dividend of £76m to its owner, a consortium consisting of PAI Partners and Charles Jobson.
The Surrey-headquartered business’ dividend is up from the £15m it issued for 2023.
The new accounts filed with Companies House also show Kallo Foods’ turnover increased from £121.7m to £124.5m in 2024.
Clipper owner facing ‘ongoing supply chain challenges’
A statement signed off by the board said: “Gross margins have risen from 24 per cent in 2023 to 26 per cent in 2024 following a focused strategy on core brand margins to cope with the continued widespread inflation pressures and product shortages.
“The directors expect future developments to include further topline growth and will continue to pursue strategies to ensure agility in response to ongoing supply chain challenges.”
Clipper was founded in 1984 by Lorraine and Mike Brehme and was one of the first companies in the UK to receive the Fairtrade Mark.
The brand was bought in 2007 by Fleming Family & Partners and then again in 2012 by Royal Wessanen for around £50m before it was then acquired by its current owner.
While the group’s UK head office is based in Surrey, Clipper has its manufacturing site in Dorset.