May 2021
Kitwave Group plc
Canaccord Genuity acts as Nominated Adviser, Sole Bookrunner and Sole Broker to Kitwave Group plc on its £81.6 million Placing and AIM IPO
Canaccord Genuity is pleased to announce it has acted as Nominated Adviser, Sole Bookrunner and Sole Broker on the AIM IPO of Kitwave Group plc (“Kitwave” or the “Company”), which admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange on 24 May 2021.
The IPO was priced at 150 pence per ordinary share, giving the Company a market capitalisation at admission of £105 million. In total, £81.6 million was raised as part of the IPO. The Company raised gross proceeds of £64.0 million, which will be used to paydown the Company’s existing debt and to fund transaction related expenses in connection with the IPO, with a further £17.6 million raised for the selling shareholders. The Placing attracted strong support from high quality institutional investors and was significantly over-subscribed.
Kitwave (Ticker: KITW.L) is a UK-headquartered, independent, delivered wholesale business with approximately 1,100 employees and a network of 26 depots able to support delivery throughout the UK, specialising in selling impulse products (such as confectionery, soft drinks, snacks, ice cream), frozen and chilled foods, alcohol, groceries and tobacco to approximately 38,000, mainly independent, customers.
The diverse customer base includes independent convenience retailers, leisure outlets, vending machine operators, foodservice providers and other wholesalers, as well as leading national retailers. The Group was founded in 1987, following the acquisition of a single-site confectionery wholesale business based in North Shields, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom.