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- Healthy food company Oliver’s Real Food (OLI) has extended its discussions with prospective partner EG
- A decision on EG’s takeover bid will be reached by 9:30 am on Friday May 8
- The company has also made a few changes to its board following Chairman Nicholas Dower’s resignation last Saturday
- CEO and founder Jason Gunn will step into the role as Chairman, serving as interim CEO until mid-June
- After this time, former About Life CEO Tammie Philips will become the new Chief Executive at Oliver’s
- David McMahon has also joined the board as an Executive Director, while operations manager Amanda Gunn will step down from her role and continue with the company as a Non-Executive Director
- Oliver’s is up 1.23 per cent on the market today, trading for 4.1 cents per share
Healthy food company Oliver’s Real Food (OLI) has announced a potential deal with EG is still in discussions and has extended negotiations about an agreement until this Friday.
In early March, the EG Group was going to purchase Oliver’s. However, when Oliver’s exceeded its net debt ceiling under the agreement, the debt package put a dent in the negotiations. Oliver’s then asked EG for a waiver, but the group said ‘no deal.‘
Last Friday was the deadline for the companies to make a decision on the acquisition. However, today, the company announced this decision has been extended.
Under the new agreement, EG and Oliver’s will have to decide by 9:30 am Friday, May 8.
Chairman Resigns
On Saturday, Chairman Nicholas Dower resigned from the Oliver’s board. His resignation was accepted and made effective immediately.
Nicholas stepped into the role in March 2019, which was an extremely difficult time for the company.
“There is no doubt in my mind that without the courageous and dedicated efforts of Nick over the last 13 months, the business of Oliver’s would simply not exist today,” founder and CEO Jason Gunn said.
“I feel a great sense of gratitude for the contribution Nicholas has made to this business and I thank him sincerely on behalf of the board, the shareholders, the team of dedicated human beings that work in this business, the suppliers, as well as the customers that love this business and the service we provide,” he added.
As a result of the decision, the board has elected Jason as the new Oliver’s Chairman. Jason will continue as CEO on an interim basis until June 17.
New CEO
Tammie Philips will be the new CEO of Oliver’s and will commence the role on Wednesday, June 17.
Oliver’s says Tammie brings extensive experience and knowledge, having founded About Life, a health-focused wholefood supermarket chain.
Jason says Tammie is the perfect fit for the company.
“As the founder and incumbent CEO, I am delighted to have found someone that I am confident is the ideal candidate to take this business forward,” he said.
“Tammie has demonstrated over many years an incredible entrepreneurial spirit, as well as a very real passion for health and retailing. In getting to know Tammie, I find her ‘roll up the sleeves’ hands-on approach, combined with strategic and analytic abilities and a lot of tenacity to be just what this business needs moving forward,” he added.
Tammie is pleased to be joining a business with a higher purpose “to inspire people to eat healthier and live a better life.”
“It’s an extremely exciting time to be joining the Oliver’s business. Food retailing in
convenience is evolving at a very fast pace. At the same time, the market for fresh, healthy options is expanding as the consciousness about fresh, health foods continues to awaken,” she said.
New Executive Director
David McMahon has also joined the board as an Executive Director, effective immediately. He will remain his role as Chief Financial Officer and co-Company Secretary.
David has been the CFO since April 2019 has in the past worked extensively with Woolworths.
Amanda Gunn resigns
Additionally, operations manager Amanda Gunn has resigned, however, will continue with the company as a Non-Executive Director.
Oliver’s is up 1.23 per cent on the market today, trading for 4.1 cents per share at 1:02 pm AEST.
