LONDON — Several days after a deal was announced to inject funding into online retailer Lovehoney Group Ltd., company execs signaled they will invest their new-found funding in the latest in technologies and expand marketing efforts to find new customers in unserved markets.
Telemos Capital, a Swiss investment firm, made the investment in the retailer for an undisclosed sum, taking a controlling stake in Lovehoney. According to the deal XBIZ reported on Friday, Lovehoney founders Richard Longhurst and Neal Slateford will continue to run the company.
Currently, Lovehoney is finding 60 percent of its sales from the U.K., with the remainder from Europe, U.S. and Australia — all of which, the company’s founders said, “have achieved significant growth in recent years.”
In addition, the Bath, England-based retailer has seen booming sales in those markets in recent years. Lovehoney delivered strong compound annual sales growth of about 30 percent in the past three years. In its last fiscal year, it recorded £100 million in annual sales.
Slateford and Longhurst said they will invest in new technology and marketing resources to “raise its profile in new geographies and to continue to evolve its excellent customer service, online content, community and innovative new products.”
“This is the culmination of 16 years of hard work by our brilliant teams in Bath and our offices worldwide,” Longhurst said. “It has been a phenomenal journey for Neal and I, and we're beyond excited at our future plans for Lovehoney.”
Slateford, meanwhile, noted “this investment shows the strength of online retail and will allow us to break into new markets globally.”
With Longhurst and Slateford leading day-to-day operations, Telemos’ Executive Chairman Philippe Jacobs and Chief Investment Officer Jacob Polny joined the Lovehoney board.
Slateford and Longhurst said that with the backing of Telemos, Lovehoney “will accelerate its plans for international expansion, tapping into fragmented and underdeveloped markets and building on its strong consumer engagement.”
Pictured: From left to right, Telemos Executive Chairman Philippe Jacobs, Lovehoney Co-Founder Neal Slateford, Telemos Chief Investment Officer Jacob Polny and Lovehoney Co-Founder Richard Longhurst.
