Health group acquires sugar-free mint & gum brand

La Salle can reveal that Newcastle-under-Lyme-based Health Made Easy (HME) - the company behind wholesaler 'Tree of Life' and vitamin brand 'Higher Nature' have acquired the Peppersmith brand.

Business acquired: Peppersmith (Freshly Cut Ltd)

Activities: Incorporated in 2009, founders Mike Stevens and Dan Shrimpton first met whilst working at Innocent drinks. They created and grew the Peppersmith brand (100% xylitol mints and gums) to achieve over 10,000,000 pack sales by 2017, which are currently sold nationwide in Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Holland & Barrett and thousands of health and whole-food retailers.

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Purchaser: Health Made Easy Limited

Activities: Established in 2015, the group are focused around the health food and wellbeing market. Their brands include Tree of Life and Higher Nature and reports in June 2018 suggest they have offered to buy online wholesaler The Health Store.

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Additional info:

John Weaver, director of HME, said: "Peppersmith presents an excellent opportunity to take on a brand that is innovative, highly ethical and clean.

"As the sugar free market continues to grow, we will be investing in the brand and using our resources to build Peppersmith’s momentum in the health and wholefood and grocery channels.

"This is in line with Health Made Easy’s broader vision that by building a family with some of the best players in their fields, the group can create a stronger presence in health and wellbeing; one of the fastest growing categories in British grocery."

Mike Stevens, who will stay on as the managing director of the Peppersmith business, added: "This is great news for the company as it gives the brand more resources, more knowledge and more access to retailers large and small who are invested in growing a healthier product range.

"The whole team is excited about taking what we do to the next level which will include more products, more marketing and a significant step up in sales."