Maggie Beer Holdings will keep its Hampers and Gifts Australia business after rejecting offers it said undervalued the division, despite its EBITDA margin slipping to 2.5 per cent.
Maggie Beer Holdings has ended its strategic review of Hampers and Gifts Australia (HGA) and will not sell the business, after its board decided the third-party proposals received did not “adequately reflect the value and potential of HGA”.
In July, MBH pushed back completion of a proposed $10 million sale of HGA to February 2027. That non-binding offer, from an unnamed multinational consumer goods company with Asia Pacific hampers and gifting operations, comprised $8 million upfront and up to $2 million in earn-outs. MBH said on Friday (16 October) that discussions with all counterparties had ended.
HGA posted net sales of $41.4 million in FY26, with an EBITDA margin of 2.5 per cent, equivalent to about $1 million in EBITDA. Sales fell 6.3 per cent, partly due to lower online traffic after a website migration in June 2025, although its gross margin improved from 53.6 per cent to 56.7 per cent.
MBH paid $40 million in cash and scrip for HGA in 2021. It was carried at $9.9 million at the end of FY25.
The board said its decision followed the appointment of managing director, Chris Illman, confirmed in September, who has presented a new strategy for HGA with its management team. MBH said it expects to deliver “significantly improved margins” and will outline its FY27 strategy to the market “in the coming months”.
Illman joined the MBH board as a non-executive director in November 2025. He was previously head of group sales, marketing and hospitality at Bickford’s Group, and has held executive roles at Kraft Foods International, Foster’s Group and Southcorp Wines.
MBH said its priorities are strengthening its balance sheet, growing HGA profit and building on growth in Maggie Beer Products, whose net sales rose 8.2 per cent in FY26.
Across the group, FY26 net sales from continuing operations were flat at $75.7 million and the statutory loss narrowed 60.8 per cent to $9.5 million. MBH ended the year with net cash of $1.9 million and no drawn debt.
