Acquisition spree for Sir Tom Hunter-backed online health and beauty giant

The Hut Group (THG), the health and beauty seller that Sir Tom Hunter has invested heavily in, has snapped up US online skincare retailer Dermstore for $350 million (£259m) as it continues its expansion strategy.

Ayrshire-born entrepreneur and philanthropist Sir Tom Hunter recently revealed a big gain from the flotation of THG through his West Coast Capital investment vehicle. He also vowed to step up the amount of money being pumped into his charitable foundation. Picture: John Devlin

THG, which owns brands including Glossybox and MyProtein, also revealed to investors that it has bought UK nutrition product suppliers Claremont Ingredients and David Berryman for £59.5m.

Hut Group founder Matt Moulding created a City sensation when he brought his company to the stock market in September in a multi-billion-pound flotation.

Ayrshire-born entrepreneur and philanthropist Hunter recently revealed a £100m gain from the flotation of THG through his West Coast Capital investment vehicle. He also vowed to step up the amount of money being pumped into his charitable foundation.

THG has grown rapidly in recent years by purchasing skincare and lifestyle brands while also operating online platforms for other brands.

Shares in the company have steadily improved since being valued at £5.4 billion in one of the year’s biggest stock market floats.

THG said it hopes the acquisition of Dermstore from US retail giant Target will help to enhance its relationships with key global beauty brands. It also expects to grow its beauty box business through Dermstore’s customer base and marketing presence.

Claremont Ingredients operates an independent flavour manufacturing and development laboratory for sports nutrition and beverages, while the David Berryman business supplies and develops fruit-based ingredients.

The group said the deals to snap up Claremont and David Berryman will help improve its product innovation among its sports nutrition portfolio while continuing to secure revenue from third-party customers.

Chairman and chief executive Moulding said: “A key driver behind the decision to list THG on the London Stock Exchange just over three months ago was to enable the group to make major global investments, such as Dermstore.com.

“Accessing capital through a London listing has enabled us to accelerate our growth plans and build out a global leadership position within the exciting beauty industry.”

THG said it expects the Dermstore acquisition to improve earnings next year by about £3m, while the nutrition suppliers deal will improve earnings by some £4m for the period.

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