High class greengrocer in prominent high street location with significant wholesale trade
Ref.EJ012 Location KentAsking Price £375,000Confidential offered for sale
Finance available to buy this business subject to status. All regulated business is passed to independent financial advisors who are regulated by the FSA | |
Asking price includes:
Annual turnover in excess of £600,000
Gross margins of 36%
Pre-tax net operating profits of £100,000+
Leasehold retail premises in prominent High Street location
Strong base of approximately 50 loyal wholesale Clients
Daily delivery service from Monday to Saturday
Reputation for quality, service and price
Extensive quality range of produce
Excellent opportunity to grow
Little or no local competition
Superb supplier relationships
Regular retail customer base
Lorry and two delivery vans
Established customer base
Excellent profit margins
Training and handover
First class reputation
Goodwill
Stock | Business profile: | Opened in 1995 by the current Owner this family run business has established itself as a firm favourite amongst its large volume of retail customers and its enviable list of valued wholesale and catering Clients for consistently supplying quality fresh fruit and vegetables at competitive prices.
Less than a hundred yards from the sea front of this bustling Kent coastal town and the only one not only on the High Street but within the town itself, this business supplies quality fresh fruit and vegetables at competitive prices all year round - achieved by judicious buying both direct from New Covent Garden and through a very well selected range of local growers. All produce is of a very high standard – the very best high quality Grade 1 standard fruit and vegetables - bought fresh every day and personally selected by the current Owner of the business.
This business prides itself on its highly personal and friendly service and maintains high levels of customer satisfaction. Perhaps old fashioned in its approach – an approach however that is well favoured by its regular customers, this business even drops round orders for retail customers who are ill or during the cold. Its customer base of approximately 50 or so wholesale and catering customers receive no lesser levels of service – a well balanced mix of local restaurants, hotels, pubs, takeaway and sandwich bars, small corner shops, nursing homes and schools, all within a ten mile radius and all benefiting from next day delivery and even same day delivery for orders placed before 9.30 am.
This is an excellent, well run business on first class margins. With turnover for the 2005 financial of £631,500 generating gross margins of approximately 36% and a pre-tax net operating profit of just over £100,000, this represents an excellent acquisition opportunity for anyone looking to purchase a very well established, high quality retail and wholesale greengrocer.
Key strengths:
This business is located in a prime High Street position within this busy Kent coastal town. It is well established within the town and has no real local competition. This business offers friendly and helpful service, quality products and competitive prices. It has developed excellent supplier relationships particularly with the local produce growers.
The business has built a wide customer base of retail and wholesale clientele. It operates with high margins and low fixed costs. Although much of the produce this business sells could be considered seasonal, this business has spread this risk by developing a retail and wholesale base and having wholesale customers across a number of sectors – the influx of holidaymakers during the summer boosting both retail and wholesale trade as restaurants and sandwich bars get much busier, balancing out the downturn in its turnover as a result of school holidays, for example.
Key opportunities:
With a strong demand for this business's products, combined with a capacity to increase turnover, a new owner contributing fresh ideas and enthusiasm will have every advantage of building on an excellent platform.
There is an excellent opportunity to build on the existing base of this company by tapping into the organic, ethnic and health conscious fresh produce markets via an organic box scheme for example. Already dealing with bulk orders and with its delivery vans idle I the afternoons and evenings having completed morning deliveries for its restaurant and hotel trade etc this business is already geared up to successfully capture this market. Already calling on New Covent Garden for its fruit and vegetable purchases, this business could also pick up fresh flowers and expand into floristry, where again there is little local competition.
This company is dominant in the area and with the prospect of unlimited expansion there is scope to spread out into other satellite areas by way of a further depot inland and therefore able to service wholesale Clients from a far wider area. Currently this business doesn’t accept credit cards, this together with the possibility of setting up an Internet based order and delivery service would have a significant impact on turnover and profitability.
Growth and expansion:
This business has very little local competition within the area and is priced to sell. This business enjoys high levels of awareness, strong brand recognition and solid year-round revenue. The business has experienced an expanding customer base since being ‘taken over’ by the current owner and can rightly boast an extensive base of long-term repeat customers and an impeccable reputation for quality of product and service underpinning its consistent profitability and outstanding growth potential.
Premises:
Occupying a prime corner street location on the High Street and less than a hundred yards from the sea front this business occupies leasehold premises of approximately 1,000 square feet of ground floor retail space. A first floor to the premises is used for storage mainly of boxes and packing materials crucial to fulfil the Christmas trade. Ample disabled parking is available to the front of the premises with a ‘pay and display’ car park also nearby. The premises have undergone significant refurbishment in recent years with a new ceiling, new lighting and refrigeration all having been recently installed.
There are two cold stores – one for retail and the other for wholesale, the latter of a size into which pallets can be dropped straight in.
Rent for the premises is £10,000 per year with a further £3,000 payable for the yard. Rates are £2,800 per annum.
Transport:
The business currently operates a 7.5 tonne lorry and two delivery vans although it is thought that one of the vans is surplus to requirements.
Opening hours:
The retail outlet currently operates between 8.00 am and 6.00 pm six days per week and between 10.00 am and 4.00 pm on a Sunday, though typically there will be someone on the premises setting out the produce up to two hours before opening and more often than not available to serve customers. | | <>Advertising and marketing:
By far the strongest form of marketing of this business is its premises, a prominent High Street location acting as a major advertising hoarding maintaining high levels of awareness and good footfall. The business also benefits from strong word of mouth recommendation and is frequently taken on as a key supplier to new outlets by chefs when they switch jobs.
With limited advertising being used in the past there are excellent opportunities to increase this and market the business more aggressively, particularly within the wholesale sector, where the launch of a website could increase the turnover and profitability of the business | | | Financial profile: |
The business is offered for sale as a going concern. All financial discussions will take place directly between the vendor and all interested parties under the auspices of Turner Butler.
Turnover for the 2004/5 financial year was £631,500 with gross profits of £230,200 and a pre-tax net operating profit of £100,400.
Full financial information is available, subject to the confidentiality agreement being returned. | Employees:
This is a family business with the owner responsible for the day-to-day management of the business supported by two other family members and additional shop staff as required particularly on Saturdays, together with an overnight driver. All staff will be to new Owners post sale. | Handover and training:
The owner is happy to provide full handover and training on all aspects of the business to ensure a smooth transfer to new Owners particularly in relation to the all important wholesale customer contacts. | Reason for sale:
The current owner wishes to pursue other business interests. | | Turner Butler Disclosure Statement: This statement applies to information relating to any company or other undertaking or business advertised for sale by Turner Butler (a 'Business') The information supplied by Turner Butler on its website or in any other promotional material ('the Information') is not and is not intended to constitute an offer for sale of the Business or any assets of the Business or of the shares of any company which owns the Business. For the avoidance of doubt there is no intention to create a legal relationship which will only come into existence when a written contract for sale and purchase of the shares in or the Business has been entered into The Information provided is not intended to address your particular requirements. Further the Information does not constitute any form of advice recommendation representation endorsement or arrangement by Turner Butler and is not intended to be relied upon in making (or refraining from making) any specific decisions. Any agreements transactions or other arrangements made between you and any client of Turner Butler are at your sole risk and responsibility. The prospective sellers of the Business have provided the Information to Turner Butler. The Information has not been verified by Turner Butler. You must carry out your own due diligence and satisfy yourself as to the accuracy of all matters. In the case of the sale of shares in a Business the Information has been prepared on the basis that the shares will consist of or include more than 50% of the voting shares and that both the seller and the buyer is either a body corporate, a partnership, a single individual or a group of connected individuals so as to fall outside the scope of regulated activities as defined by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. If you are considering a transaction which falls within the scope of such regulated activities you cannot do so through Turner Butler. Appropriate professional, legal and accountancy advice should be obtained before making or refraining to make any decision. Turner Butler does not accept any responsibility or liability for loss or damage of any nature that may occur by reliance on the Information. Neither Turner Butler nor any of our employees or agents makes any representation as to the completeness or accuracy of the Information nor do we accept any liability for any losses, costs, liabilities or expenses which may arise directly or indirectly from your use of, or reliance on the Information. This document is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with English Law and any dispute arising in connection with it shall be subject to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts Turner & Co (GB) Limited registered in England and Wales under company no. 2477988 of registered office Savoy House Savoy Circus London W3 7DA, trading as Turner Butler © Shaun Sweeney October 2006 |
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