Bellamy's Australia

Bellamy's Australia

Bellamy's Australia
Formerly called	Tasmanian Pure Foods
Traded as	ASX: BAL
Industry	Food & Beverage
Founded	2014 in Launceston, Tasmania
Headquarters	Launceston, Australia
Number of locations	8
Area served	Australia, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam
Key people	Laura McBain, CEO
Products	Organic infant formula & Organic food
Revenue	A$131.67 million [1] (2015)
Net income	A$41.20 million (2015)
Total assets	A$72.41 million (2015)
Total equity	A$48.91 million (2015)
Number of employees	46 (2015)
Subsidiaries	Bellamy's Organic
Website	bellamysaustralia.com.au

Bellamy's Australia (formerly Tasmanian Pure Foods Ltd) is a major Australian food and beverage company, and is the parent company of Bellamy's Organic, Australia’s largest organic infant formula producer.

History

Bellamy’s started as Bellamy's Organic in Launceston, Tasmania in 2004 as a family-operated company. In 2007 Bellamy’s Organic was purchased by Tasmanian Pure Foods, a privately owned business set up to invest in and build Tasmanian food and agribusinesses. In June 2014 Tasmanian Pure Foods was renamed Bellamy’s Australia.

Following a highly successful July 2014 IPO, Bellamy’s Australia Limited (BAL) listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) on 5 August 2014. Heavy trading and a more than 30% rise in initial share price saw the launch of the company deemed an 'outstanding success' by financial industry commentators.^[2]

Company overview

Bellamy’s is a Tasmanian-based company that produces 100% Australian made, certified organic foods. Bellamy’s supplies its product range to supermarket chains, pharmacy chains and independent stores across Australia, and sells direct to consumers via an online sales portal. Bellamy’s also exports its products to customers in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and New Zealand. As a result of the high demand for Bellamy’s products in Asia, the company opened an office in Shanghai in 2012 and in Singapore in 2014.

Corporate structure

Board of Directors

Robert Woolley – Independent, Non-executive Chair

Laura McBain – Managing Director and CEO

Ian Urquhart – Independent, Non-executive Director

Michael Wadley – Independent, Non-executive Director

Public Listing

In July 2014, Bellamy’s Australia sold 25 million new shares and 10.9 million existing shares to raise nearly $36 million, in what was described by the Australian Financial Review as “one of the best-performing initial public offers of the year”.^[3] Listing on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) on 5 August 2014, Bellamy’s Australia Limited (BAL) shares were “quickly embraced by investors”,^[4] surging in value as much as 34% in the first day of trading. Described by stock analysts as an "outstanding success",^[2] prices rose to a high of $1.34, before closing 30.1% above the $1 offer price at $1.31, giving the company a market capitalisation of $124 million.^[3] The issue price has valued the company at 19-times forward earnings for Financial Year 2015, with an indicative dividend of 1.6%.^[3] Share prices remained strong in the following week’s trading with a mid-week high of $1.47 settling to $1.39 at closing on Friday 15 August.^[5]

Range of products

The company's product range includes infant formula, follow-on formula, toddler milk, baby rice, baby porridge, apple and cinnamon breakfast, teething rusks, brown rice pasta, baby macaroni and spelt pasta, grain and fruit snacks, ready to serve baby meals, and vegetable macaroni. Products are developed for three specific age groups, targeting newborns (0–6 months), infants (6–12 months) and toddlers (1–3 years). In 2014 this range was expanded to include organic milk drinks for children in the 3+ years age group; positioned as a supplementary food for children, created to complement the dietary needs of toddlers and children who may require additional energy and nutrients.

Domestic and international markets

Bellamy's produces Australia's only certified organic infant formula product and is positioned as a "premium" brand within that domestic market.^[6] In 2013, the baby food and formula category in Australia experienced 9% current value growth largely due to baby formula, which experienced a 12% value increase. Bellamy’s had approximately 3% share of the overall baby category in 2014, with approximately 10% of the baby formula market share and 12% of the baby cereals and snacks market share.^[7] As at 2014, Bellamy’s has an estimated 95 per cent share of the organic segment of that market.^[8]

It is estimated that 15% of the company’s revenue for the 2014 financial year came from offshore.^[4] The company is a major exporter of organic infant formula to the (estimated 2014) $1 billion per annum^[9] Chinese organic infant formula market and is positioned as a “super premium” brand within that market.^[7] Increased focus on the development of the greater Asian market has seen the company establish subsidiary businesses in Shanghai and Singapore to handle marketing and distribution of Bellamy’s products in China and South East Asia. The company’s sales of organic infant formula are forecast to increase by 151% in the 2015 financial year, with organic food sales forecast to rise by 178% for the same period. Bellamy’s has also flagged plans to expand into the currently $650 million^[10] US and $225 million^[11] UK organic baby food markets in 2016.^[12]

Awards and recognition

The company's expansion into the Chinese market and associated rapid growth have garnered significant attention within both media and academic circles, both in Australia^[13][14][15] and internationally.^[16]

The company’s rapid and continued growth has been the subject of a section in influential marketing textbook ‘Principles of Marketing’ in which the success of the business has been attributed to Bellamy’s “sophisticated market research and their ability to launch new products at the right time with a genuine offering” by contributing author Lewis.^[16]

In 2013, high-profile CEO and Managing Director Laura McBain was named as the Telstra Tasmanian Business Woman of the Year,^[17] and went on to be named Telstra Business Woman of the Year (Private and Corporate).^[18]

In August 2014, the company was announced as the 'Best Regional Mid-Market Business' in the 2014 BRW/GE Capital Mid-Market Awards.^[19]

References