E-Commerce of wine, Campari buys 49% of Tannico for 23.4 million euros

That the boom in wine e-commerce linked to the Covid emergency is destined to consolidate is the conviction of many, and now in this sense comes a signal that seems destined to sweep away any doubts: the beverage giant Campari Group has acquired 49% of Tannico, Italy’s leading e-commerce platform for the online sale of wines and premium spirits. This has been confirmed by an official note where “Campari Group announces that it has signed an agreement with all its shareholders - including the main ones (Ceo Marco Magnocavallo, P101 SGR and Boox srl, jointly to acquire a 49% stake of Tannico Spa), for a sum of 23.4 million euros.
The structure of the transaction includes the acquisition of 39% of Tannico’s share capital by Campari Group and the simultaneous subscription of a reserved capital increase to reach a total stake of 49%.
Founded in 2013, Tannico is the market leader in online sales of wines and premium spirits in Italy, with a market share of over 30%. With over 7 million unique visitors in the last 12 months, Tannico's selection boasts 14,000 wines from over 2,500 Italian and foreign wineries. In addition to wines, the offer includes high-end spirits. Taking advantage of innovative communication for the world of wine, advanced technology applied to online sales and innovative digital marketing, Tannico has progressively extended its activity to the business to business channel, offering professional operators in the sector high added value services both in the area of assortment and warehouse management and in the area of personalized delivery solutions.
In 2019, Tannico achieved net sales of 20.6 million euros. The aggregate growth in net sales over the last three years (2016-2019) was 50%, and this trend grew significantly in the first quarter of 2020, also due to the Covid-19 emergency, reaching a substantial management break even. Since 2017, Tannico has expanded its presence to over 20 markets, including the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and France.
The total consideration for the purchase of the 49% stake was equal to EUR 23.4 million: as at 31 December 2019, the net liquidity held by Tannico amounted to EUR 1.6 million. The consideration will be financed through available resources and will be paid in cash. Following the investment agreement, Campari Group will have the option to increase the investment to 100% from 2025, subject to certain conditions. The transaction is expected to be completed by July 2020.
“As an essential part of our digital transformation path, e-commerce is a strategically relevant channel for our business. In this regard, Tannico, the leading e-commerce platform for wines and premium spirits in Italy - comments Bob Kunze-Concewitz, Chief Executive Officer of Campari Group - represents a unique and strategic solution for our business development goals. Leveraging Tannico's experience, we will be able to accelerate our development plans in e-commerce, a channel already growing, but destined to become even more strategic following the likely long-term changes in consumer behavior induced by the Covid-19 emergency, significantly improving our digital skills. With our support, Tannico will also be able to strongly accelerate its international and business-to-business services development, further increasing the already extremely remarkable speed of its growth”.
“In this period of great change for the purchasing dynamics of consumers increasingly closer to the online world, it is essential for Tannico to have the necessary resources for even more accelerated development - said Marco Magnocavallo, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of Tannico - without ever sacrificing the part of curation that distinguishes us. With Campari Group we have found an ideal partner that will help us consolidate our leadership in the Italian market as well as significantly expand our business abroad and in the B2B market”.
“As P101 and on behalf of the other investors, who have believed in Tannico with us since 2015, we are extremely satisfied with this operation - adds Andrea Di Camillo, Founding Partner of P101 SGR - which allows us to mark the way towards disinvestment from one of our subsidiaries but also to make a piece of the road together with one of the most beautiful Italian companies. This operation shows that technology and venture capital are “allies” of companies that, like Campari Group, know how to look to the near future but also to the long term”.
Vitale & Co Spa and Chiomenti Studio Legale acted as consultants for P101 SGR in this transaction. Pedersoli Studio Legale and McDermott Will & Emery acted as consultants for Campari Group.