Ferrero offers to buy Thorntons for £112m

Italy-based chocolate-maker Ferrero International has agreed to buy the struggling British chocolatier Thorntons for £112m.

Ferrero is looking to expand its business in the UK, where it has been in operation for around 60 years.

Considered to be a luxurious brand, Thorntons has lost its sheen over the years as it failed to adapt to the transformation in tastes that have graduated from sweeter to darker chocolate, reported BBC.

Thorntons chairman Paul Wilkinson was quoted by BBC as saying: "Ferrero is a successful global confectionery business with a strong family heritage and as such represents a good cultural fit for Thorntons.

"The board of Thorntons therefore has given its unanimous recommendation for the offer from Ferrero."

Ferrero International specialises in manufacturing Nutella and Tic Tacs apart from the hugely popular Ferrero Rocher chocolates.

Established in Sheffield in 1911, Thorntons has 242 of its own shops and cafes in the UK and Ireland, apart from its 158 franchise outlets.

The company had to release a profit warning to its investors in December last year due to a slump in product sales in supermarket chains.

The sale of Thorntons will mark the loss of one of UKs last remaining home-grown chocolate brands to an overseas buyer following the sale of Cadbury and Green & Black’s that were acquired by Kraft Foods in 2009.

Speaking about the acquisition, Ferrero CEO Giovanni Ferrero said: "We delivered our best ever results in the UK in 2014, giving us confidence that now is the right time to broaden our roots in this important market."

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Image: Ferrero Rocher aims at expanding its UK business with the acquisition. Photo: courtesy of Timothy Titus.