- Chapel Down mentioned AIM itemizing will allow it to draw a wider pool of buyers
- Chapel Down mentioned it delivered a document 3,811 tonnes of grapes this 12 months
Chapel Down has unveiled plans to maneuver its share itemizing to the Various Funding Market (AIM) after having fun with a document harvest this 12 months.
The Kent-based winemaker’s shares are at the moment traded on the Aquis Alternate and the group hopes a transfer to AIM will allow it to draw a wider pool of buyers and enhance liquidity over time.
The group plans to plan to double the scale of its enterprise between 2021 and 2026, partially, by ‘a re-focus of the enterprise on wine’, particularly glowing wine, and funding in client and buyer advertising and marketing.
Ambitions: Chapel Down’s chief monetary officer, Robert Smith, left, and chief government, Andrew Carter, proper
Chapel Down mentioned it delivered a document 3,811 tonnes of grapes this 12 months. The tonnage was 86 per cent greater than in 2022 and 75 per cent greater than Chapel Down’s earlier document posted in 2018.
The corporate expects to provide round 3.4million bottles of wine from this 12 months’s harvest.
Andrew Carter, chief government of Chapel Down, mentioned: ‘We’re happy to announce Chapel Down’s plan to confess its shares to buying and selling on AIM, a transfer which displays the maturity of the enterprise and the formidable development plan we’re dedicated to delivering within the years forward.
‘Chapel Down has enormously benefitted from its AQSE itemizing over the previous 20 years because it has grown from a start-up in an embryonic business into England’s main and largest winemaker with a constant observe document of worthwhile development.’
He added: ‘We imagine {that a} transfer to AIM will appeal to a wider pool of buyers to take part in Chapel Down’s development because the main producer on the planet’s latest world wine area and as we proceed to pursue our properly progressed and absolutely funded plan to double the scale of the enterprise within the 5 years to 2026.’
The group has 159,253,885 unusual shares in situation and expects the cancellation of its admission on the Apex Section of the AQSE Progress Market and admission to AIM to happen concurrently on or round 7 December 2023.
The corporate has 14,322,158 A1 shares of £0.0001 every and three,800,000 A2 shares of £0.0001 every in situation; generally known as development shares.
Bumper harvest: Chapel Down expects to provide round 3.4m bottles of wine from this 12 months’s harvest
On admission to AIM, the holders of the expansion shares shall be entitled to obtain a sure variety of unusual shares, Chapel Down mentioned.
Chapel Down owns, leases and sources from 1,023 acres of vineyards in south east England, of which 750 acres are absolutely productive, making it the most important wine producer within the UK. The enterprise mentioned it bought 1.41million bottles of wine final 12 months.
Josh Donaghay-Spire, head winemaker and operations director, mentioned: ‘Our confidence on this 12 months’s harvest has been steadily constructing as we’ve got labored with optimum situations via the 12 months, however this crop has exceeded our excessive expectations each for its dimension and high quality.
‘The ripeness ranges in 2023 exceed these seen within the robust vintages of 2019 and 2021, and at this early stage within the winemaking course of, this 12 months’s wines are displaying a light-weight and delicate character with good purity of fruit.
‘As winemakers, we relish the chance to maximise the potential of this excellent crop and in doing so we take one other step in direction of establishing Chapel Down as essentially the most celebrated English winemaker.’
In September, Carter mentioned the ‘bittersweet a part of local weather change’ is that Britain now has ‘a maritime local weather that permits us to develop wine grapes’.
Chapel Down additionally confirmed in September its proposed new purpose-built vineyard at Highland Court docket Farm, exterior Canterbury, had acquired planning approval.
The group’s web gross sales, excluding responsibility, within the six months to 30 June rose by 21 per cent to £8.4million.
Off-trade gross sales had been up 25 per cent to £4.8million, with Chapel Down market share rising to 36 per cent within the interval and the model driving 80 per cent of total English glowing wine class worth development.
The group mentioned it loved a ‘extremely profitable’ launch into Responsibility Free, with listings secured at London Heathrow and London Gatwick, contributing to a 90 per cent development in export revenues.
