Consumer product brand JML has acquired health and beauty goods start-up Brand Evangelists in a deal worth GBP2.3 million.
JML, which was founded in 1986, is a UK-based company specialising in retail promotions, TV home shopping and e-commerce. A spokesperson said today that it had acquired a 51 per cent stake in Brand Evangelists, who specialise in health and beauty products aimed at a young demographic.
“This acquisition is complementary to JML in that we share the core principle of products that require demonstrations and have mass appeal. However, the key differentiator is that Brand Evangelists market their products primarily through social channels. We intend to utilise the expertise of Brand Evangelists to strengthen our social media marketing and reach a whole new audience,” says JML CEO Ken Daly.
Brand Evangelists is headed by Mark Curry, a former senior buyer at Boots. Patrick Leahy, CFO at JML, said the leadership at BE was a major reason for the deal.
“As a board, we were very impressed with Brand Evangelists’ management team,” he says. “At JML we have a strategic plan to double our sales in the next three years, and it was clear to us that Brand Evangelists share the same level of ambition that we do.”
The Brand Evangelists product range will continue to be sold under the BE brand.
