Glisten completes refinancing with £32m Barclays facility
SNACKS and sweets group Glisten today announced that it has signed a new three-year £32m banking facility with Barclays.
The facility, which is committed until December 31, 2012, completes the Leeds-based group’s refinancing to help it achieve its ambition of becoming the “best young food company” in the sector.
Earlier this month Glisten reported pre-tax profits slipped to £3.38m for the year ended June 30 compared to £6.68m the year before.
Revenue rose 1% to £74.4m from £73.8m in 2008.
Glisten said its products were showing “excellent performance” and that like-for-like sales in the first 17 weeks of the current year were 13% ahead.
Glisten had been forced to delay the announcement of its results until an independent review of its accounting and reporting processes had been completed following the suspension of two senior directors in June.
They were suspended due to “apparent failures in accounting practice and management process” at its Halo Food division.
However, it said that the understating of costs by material amounts was an isolated incident but that it had reviewed its internal procedures to reduce the likelihood of it ever happening again.
The company’s brands include Fruitus produced by Lyme Regis Foods, Dormen and SunMaid.
In September 2007, the group acquired 50% of Skinny Candy, a young branded confectionery business focused on low sugar-low fat confectionery, and Dormen Foods, which became the foundation stone of its savoury snacking division.
