The Hut Group to boost acquisitions budget as beauty opportunities abound

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Apr 16, 2021

The Hut Group plans to spend even more on making acquisitions in the future having set a new target of around £250 million a year for buying businesses, it said this week.

Following the release of its full-year results, the listed online-focused company said its previous ambition had been to spend around £50 million a year.

But the pandemic has not only seen the shift online on the part of consumers accelerating, it has created acquisition opportunities that might not have existed without it.

The firm’s most recent buy was US-based beauty specialist Dermstore, for which it paid around £251 million/$350 million. That deal complete in February.

However, it has actually completed seven takeover deals since it first listed on the London Stock Exchange last September, with smaller deals attracting less attention than the mega Dermstore buy.

The Times quoted founder and CEO Matthew Moulding saying that the company will continue looking at opportunities in the beauty sector and would seek businesses with a strong sustainability edge, such as the plastics recycling business it has just bought for £4 million.

The news around the firm’s acquisition strategy came after the company had released results showing its sales surged in its latest financial year. And while profits were hurt by spending linked to its IPO last autumn and to the pandemic, the company remains upbeat about its future prospects.