Huddled Group PLC on Monday announced that it has acquired a 75% equity stake in direct-to-consumer retailer Boop Beauty Ltd.

Shares in Huddled were trading 1.1% higher at 2.88 pence in London late on Monday morning.

The Nottingham, England-based investor in e-commerce brands said it will pay ‘a modest sum’ for the equity, ‘roughly equivalent to the value of stock on hand’, and intends to ‘inject further capital’ to further Boop’s growth.

Boop specialises in the sale of excess beauty and cosmetic products, working with luxury beauty and wellness brands ‘to help them sell remnant, surplus and discontinued products in a responsible and brand friendly manner’.

Its online store has been temporarily deactivated while it is integrated into Huddled Group. The company expects to relaunch the platform in early September.

‘With limited capital at its disposal Boop delivered 558 orders in Q2 2024, with an average order value of circa £39,’ Huddled said.

However, it added: ‘Together with the encouraging reception from suppliers, we believe that with additional investment and support the business could be well placed for growth.’

Once it completes the deal, Huddled plans to make additional working capital available to Boop.

This should ‘[allow] it to purchase a broader and deeper range of relevant stock, as well as a deeper range of the faster selling items and increase customer acquisition marketing’, Huddled said.

Boop’s Founder Yasmine Amr, who worked as legal counsel at L’Oreal SA from mid-2019 to October last year, will stay on as a non-executive director and shareholder.

‘The investment from Huddled will allow me to accelerate the vision I had for Boop - I’m excited to be working with the Huddled team to drive the business forward,’ Amr commented.

Huddled said that acquiring Boop aligns with its strategy of building a portfolio of e-commerce brands.

‘The Boop business concept is fantastic and sits perfectly with the Huddled circular economy strategy,’ said Huddled Chief Executive Officer Martin Higginson. ‘It was clear that Huddled could provide Boop with some key ingredients - more stock, marketing and fulfilment - to drive growth.

‘I’m confident with the resources and support of the Huddled Group, Boop can flourish, and become a trusted and ethical partner for beauty and cosmetic companies in solving their excess stock challenges.’

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