Wedderspoon Organic sources its mānuka honey products from the South Island.
Wedderspoon Organic sources its mānuka honey products from the South Island.
Wedderspoon Organic, the largest seller of New Zealand sourced and manufactured mānuka honey products in North America, has been bought by Florenz, a subsidiary of the Christchurch-based investment company Masthead – owned by the Stewart family.
Pennsylvania-headquartered Wedderspoon Organic was founded 24 years ago and its products range from mānukahoney to mānuka honey lozenges, drops and lip balm as well as bee propolis throat sprays.
Its products are stocked in more than 23,000 stores in the United States and Canada ranging from Costco to Walmart, CVS and Whole Foods.
It has operations in New Zealand, where it sources honey.
Florenz has been run since last year by former Air New Zealand marketing boss Mike Tod, who previously headed the TAB after leaving the airline in 2020.
It also owns New Zealand-based vitamins and supplements exporter Xtend-Life Group, ingredients manufacturer Dry Food New Zealand and innovative blackcurrant-based sports performance supplement exporter 2Before Performance Nutrition, which was bought from Government-owned Plant and Food Research.
Florenz is also a cornerstone shareholder of New Zealand herbal remedies company Harker Herbals Products and is on the lookout for other health firms to invest in.
Masthead – headed by Mark Stewart – has invested widely over the past three decades.
Its most recent business divestment was the sale of its premium pet food manufacturer and exporter Ziwi in 2021 for a reported figure of more than $1 billion.
Stewart’s father, Sir Robertson, built electronics company PDL into a manufacturing powerhouse in this country.
Tod, Florenz Group chief executive, said there was growing global demand for natural health products from trusted brands and countries with good reputations, such as New Zealand.
Mike Tod was CEO of TAB NZ after leaving Air NZ.
“Brand New Zealand has never been stronger overseas and consumers globally are rapidly moving away from synthetic health products to support their wellbeing.”
He said the company’s 2Before blackcurrant-based sports performance business was an example of Kiwi innovation and science.
The business was first established in 2019 with Masthead taking a controlling stake in November 2021.
Its products are used by Olympians and teams and athletes in basketball’s NBA and NBL in the United States and Australia, as well as players in the NRL in Australia and New Zealand.
Florenz is actively looking at other investment opportunities beyond Wedderspoon as it seeks to grow a world class export business to further strengthen the New Zealand economy.
“We have an outstanding leadership team at Florenz with strong international experience and a deep belief in the ability of Kiwis to compete and win on the global stage. Through Florenz, we have begun assembling and growing a complementary series of businesses,” he said.
Establishing a base in the US would help accelerate the growth of products into North America.
Terms of the sale weren’t disclosed.
Chief commercial officer of Florenz, Mark Sadd, says the New Zealand mānuka honey story is one that all Kiwis can be proud of.
The Wedderspoon team under chief executive Rebecca Remley had steadily grown a highly customer-focused business of scale in one of the toughest markets for a New Zealand product to succeed.
“It is terrific to be able to support Rebecca and her team as they seek to accelerate growth through both online and bricks and mortar sales in the US, Canada and Europe in particular.
“Product innovation is a key enabler of that, and the team has some exciting customer-led product developments in the pipeline,” Sadd said.
Grant Bradley has been working at the Herald since 1993. He is the Business Herald’s deputy editor and covers aviation and tourism.
