Supreme buys Clearly Drinks for £15m

Supreme said on Monday that it has bought Clearly Drinks, a UK manufacturer of specialised canned and bottled-at-source spring water and soft drinks, for £15m.

Established in 1885, Clearly Drinks is a brand owner and manufacturer of soft drinks and bottled-at-source spring water in cans, glass and polyethylene terephthalate bottles. It currently services around 70 customers nationwide including major UK retailers Waitrose, Aldi, Tesco, Sainsbury's and Farm Foods.

Alongside manufacturing its own brands and providing private and own label beverages for supermarkets and discounters, Clearly Drinks is a contract manufacturer for a number of the world's largest soft drinks companies.

The business employs around 100 members of staff and operates across a 150,000 sq. ft. freehold site which includes three onsite natural spring water boreholes capable of accessing up to 300m litres of fresh spring water.

For the year ended 31 December 2023, Clearly reported unaudited revenue of £22.4m and adjusted EBITDA of £3m.

AIM-listed Supreme is a manufacturer and supplier of fast-moving consumer goods. It supplies products across five categories: batteries, lighting, vaping, sports nutrition and wellness, and branded distribution.

Chief executive Sandy Chadha said: "We are delighted to be acquiring Clearly, a high-quality manufacturer and brand owner of soft drinks, which I believe delivers a significant component of our broader diversification strategy. Our enlarged business is not only gaining a strong additional pillar, which fully aligns with our vaping, lighting, batteries and sports nutrition & wellness categories, but also a significant opportunity to develop and capitalise on further cross and upsell opportunities which our trusted reputation across the UK retail space facilitates.

"We look forward to welcoming Clearly into the Supreme family and updating shareholders on our progress over the course of the current financial year."