West Berkshire Brewery (WBB), the independent brewer, which is chaired by brewing and pub entrepreneur David Bruce, is to launch a share offer in the New Year as it looks to raise c£2m as part of a first step to significantly expand the business.
The company, of which Bruce became chairman in March, is to offer family, friends and WBB fans the opportunity to buy a stake for as little as £1,000.
Bruce invested £100k in the business, which has grown by an average of approximately 20% each year since 2001 and now has annual sales of over £1m, last July and is acquiring a further £50k worth of shares as part of the new round of fundraising.
The founder of the Firkin chain and Capital Pub Company has teamed up the founders of WBB, which makes an array of craft-brewed beers including “Good Old Boy” and “Dr Hexter’s Healer”, to offer beer lovers and local residents a chance to buy a stake in the company.
Bruce, who is currently overseeing the expansion of the City Pub Company with Clive Watson, told M&C Report earlier this year that he’d consider using existing cash at the brewery, which currently operates one pub, the Rising Sun at Stockcroft, to acquire tied leasehold pubs if they allow the company to serve its own beers.
The entrepreneur, who famously developed both the Firkin and the Slug & Lettuce pub chains and was a co-founder of the team which created, floated and then sold The Capital Pub Company for £93m, said: “West Berkshire Brewery is a fabulous, authentic, British brewing success story which I am absolutely thrilled now to lead. WBB makes wonderful beers in a glorious part of the world – where I have been fortunate enough to live for many years – and the really exciting bit is that beer lovers and craft-brewing enthusiasts now have the chance to join us as shareholders and to share in this great story, as well as in our future success.”
WBB – located near the River Thames, in “Wind in the Willows” country – was founded by husband-and-wife duo, Dave and Helen Maggs, almost 20 years ago when they used their life savings to launch the business – initially making beer in a converted barn behind a pub.
Together with their business partners, Andy and Karen Baum, who joined WBB in 1998, they have created a brewery that produces an array of award-winning beers.
As all four founders are approaching retirement age they have decided, instead of selling up in the traditional sense, to offer some of their founding shares to their family, friends and the loyal fans of their beers. They all plan to remain involved and to retain a significant stake in the company.
The offer to buy a stake in the business will run throughout January and all enquiries should be made to the company via the brewery website:www.wbbrew.com
