11:45 Wed 15 Jul 2020
Grafenia plc - Bond Facility for up to £50m & trading update
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 ("MAR"). With the publication of this announcement via a
("
Perpetual Bond Facility of up to
In addition, the Company provides a trading update for the period since
Perpetual Bond Facility
The Perpetual Bond Facility will enable the Company to issue Bonds each of which will be valid in perpetuity from the date of their issue and will be freely transferable. The key terms of the Bonds that have been issued are:
● amount issued -
● issued at 67% of their nominal value;
● no interest for three years;
● thereafter, interest of 6% per annum payable annually in arrears;
● issue date of
● redeemable by the Company on any anniversary of the issue date from
● admitted to trading in the Open Market on the
● non-convertible;
● unsecured - to rank pari passu with any future bonds.
The Bond was arranged by the Company's
The net proceeds of the Bonds issued will be used to support the Company's acquisition strategy and for general working capital requirements.
Related party transaction
The Directors, excluding
Trading update
We last updated the market on
Our Nettl company stores were closed by the lockdown, but our production hub remained open, with social distancing measures in place. Everyone who could work from home, has been. And we furloughed around 90 of our 180 team members. Today, around 50 remain furloughed and we've been rotating colleagues, as the rules allow.
In March, overall revenue was 65% of the previous year. With the country in lockdown, and most of our customers closed, April ended around 30% of last year. As it became clear social distancing would be here for some time, we began developing new product lines for a covid-secure world, like floor stickers, branded face masks and sneeze guards. In May, sales climbed by more than 50% compared to April, but still only around 40% of last year. As more businesses began to re-open, they needed screens, hand sanitiser stations and social distancing signage. We launched a 52 page catalogue of covid-secure paraphernalia, mailed to clients. In June, sales were back to 90% of last year, with strong sales of covid-related products, including banners for football stadium seats, when games were played behind closed doors. It's too early to tell how July and the rest of the summer will trade. However, not everything we've been selling has been related to Coronavirus - orders for our existing product range such as brochures, displays and marketing material have been received.
Sales of litho printing have been most impacted during the second quarter of 2020, partially offset by year-on-year growth of signage and websites. As businesses locked down, many used the time to update their websites, add new functionality or increase their search ranking. Sales of websites and associated hosting revenue was significantly up, compared to the same period last year.
During the pandemic, as we were unable to visit prospective Nettl partners, or bring them to the classroom to train, we repackaged our Nettl subscription, to make it more accessible. During the three months we've been in lockdown, we've added 14 new Nettl partners in the
Whilst some Nettl and
"This crisis has brought out the best in our people. We're really proud of the way our teams have rapidly prototyped new products and production tooled-up to respond to new demands. And how our sales, design and support teams have created new assets, to help our clients and partners navigate the adjusted world. It's a lonely time to be in business, and our network has pulled together to support one another and our clients. With our diverse product range, from mobile websites to stadium wraps, we aren't as reliant on printing sales as we once were. Having a partner network under contract gives us a degree of stability. Nevertheless, it's difficult to forecast what will happen to our clients and general business activity, in the rest of the year, so we will update our guidance when we have better visibility."
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR)
MAR came into effect from
For further information:
David Hart / Liz Kirchner / Nicholas Chambers 0203 328 5656
About Grafenia
Grafenia creates software and systems which power the graphic arts industry. The Group licences its brands, software and technology to partners in the UK and internationally. It also sells and manufacturers products, ranging from printed business marketing to large scale signage.
The Group has multiple routes to market, including the printing.com network. Its retail-based Nettl formula is expanding. In cities, the Group operates company-owned Nettl stores. In towns and neighbourhoods, it partners with existing businesses who 'bolt-on' the Nettl formula. Nettl mostly sells a range of 'cross-media' products and services to SMEs such as websites, apps, e-commerce, print, display, signage and exhibition marketing.
The Group is acquisitive, with its largest acquisition being
Further information can be found at https://www.grafenia.com/
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