After a break of seventeen years will drink producer Lucas Bols back on the Damrak. It was then still part of the merger combination Bols Wessanen, after the Amsterdam-based company founded in 1575, first years as an independent fund quoted on the stock exchange.
CEO and co-shareholder Huub van Doorne calls the reintroduction a” logical step “in the development of the company, which was supported by investor AAC Capital in 2006, detached from the French liquor empire Rémy Cointreau. “It is a great company for the exhibition. Here we go for it. “
Why did you opt for an IPO? Lucas Bols could have gone once again looking for a private equity partner or a strategic party, such as Diageo and Bacardi?
” In 2006 we started this adventure. Back in Amsterdam, where we have been able to give back a heart and a soul, the company again. AAC Capital has developed over the years as a very loyal shareholder and supporter to make this possible. We now arrived at a stage where we had to bend us over a logical next step. A step that is especially good for the company Lucas Bols. It fit a wide shareholder base, independence and the ability to continue the growth strategy. As the stock market improved, the intention for an IPO approached. It is a logical conclusion. Other paths than this we have not walked in. “
We see the recent years, more Dutch companies leave then come on the fair. They say the public market earlier as costly and annoying experience.
“We see it as a positive opportunity. An Amsterdam based company back on the Amsterdam stock exchange. A company that in addition stems from the same time that the oldest stock market began the world. As far as I am concerned also expresses an aspiration for the future. Think of it as a break, it’s good for business to do so. With pride comes a Dutch company again in the fair.
“We must encourage the platform fair weather. It must be supported by the BV, the Netherlands. Hopefully we get replicated and we locomotive function.
What you aim with the € 125 million that will pick you ?
“We issue shares to broaden our capital base. It allows us to largely resolve our bank debt and cumulative preference shares (in total € 175 million, ed.). This allows us to further improve our financial structure. And it allows us to distribute at least 50% of the profit for dividends. We are making good margins and generate a lot of cash. We will be an attractive dividend share.
“The new capital also enables us to pursue our growth strategy. Meanwhile, we get 70% of our revenues from our international brands and 30% from the regional brands such as Bokma, Harteveltstraat and Coebergh. That ratio in 2006 was still at 55/45. In these global brands is growing, mainly due to the further popularization of the cocktail culture. With our spirits we have a leadership position on this. The regional brands generate the cash that we can use in international growth. We also want to strengthen our position through appropriate, small acquisitions. “
What part of the company will soon traded on the stock market?
“That depends on the price and valuation. We do have an idea about this, but there can and should we say nothing about. Moreover, it also depends on the market conditions.
Sometimes beverage producers for the top prize of the hand, like last year even Jim Beam for $ 16 billion. Douwe Egberts was after a year again of the fair, at a hefty bonus. Would that also be a reason for investors to step in soon?
“In general you can say that you sometimes see ratings that exceed everything. But we do not for nothing that we want to distribute a significant portion of the profits. Thus our intentions are clear. We opt for a sustainable future at the fair. The management has also committed itself to go through. The company deserves independence. That is the best prerequisite for the future.
Since 2006, sales and operating income remain stable. If you had not suggested anything of the spin-off?
“We had us at that time no idea of made that a financial crisis could erupt with all the consequences for the economy. The world has changed. With these results we have just proved that we well have come through the crisis. Meanwhile, we have put down a very different company that is able to grow with its global brands. More than half of sales now come from outside Western Europe, nearly a quarter we get from Asia and the Pacific. We are successful in China and Japan. In the US, we have built an organization that sells all Lucas Bols products. We have been almost nine years engaged in repair and maintenance to make a nice home here. Underlying has changed very much. “
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