Belgium: Lotus Bakeries to buy Kiddylicious

Belgian biscuit and cake manufacturer Lotus Bakeries has announced the purchase of baby and toddler food business Kiddylicious for a price in the region of £42 million ($55 million).

The sale price is described as being about twice Kiddylicious’ forecast sales for 2018.

Based in southern England, Kiddylicious was set up in 2009 and last year posted £16 million in sales. The brand will join Bear snacks and Nakd snack bars in the Lotus Bakeries portfolio, with managing director Sally Preston, continuing to run the business.

Commenting on the move, Lotus Bakeries CEO Jan Boone said: “We firmly believe that the Kiddylicious brand has a delicious and extensive product offering for babies and toddlers, which enriches our product range in the healthier-snacking segment. Additionally, we want to strengthen the position of Kiddylicious in its home market, the UK. The UK has contributed significantly and positively to Lotus Bakeries, where we have seen fantastic growth in past years for Lotus Biscoff biscuits and spread and also continued strong growth for the healthy-snacking brands Nakd, Trek, Bear and Urban Fruit”.

Sally Preston added: “In order to take the brand to the next level we needed a strategic partner who shares our unique, innovative culture and has the capability to support us in accessing and developing our domestic and international markets”.

Source: Lotus Bakeries