THG CEO Matt Moulding has said Julian Hearn deserves every penny of his reported £400m payout after Paris-based food giant Danone acquired Huel in a deal worth €1bn.
Hearn founded Huel in 2015 with a mission to improve the health of people and the planet through complete and convenient nutrition.
Huel – which takes its name from a combination of ‘Human’ and ‘Fuel’ – has since sold more than 600 million meals across 100+ countries, with around 50 per cent less CO2 impact than the average meal.
Moulding took to LinkedIn to praise Hearn, saying he fully deserved his payout of up to £400m ‘as payback for all the risk-taking, stress and sleepless nights over the years’.
‘A great British success story’: Huel bought by Danone in €1bn deal
He wrote: “You can’t help but respect and recognise the hard work that’s gone into making Huel the success it’s become.
“The back story is brilliant. A young working-class man backing himself to switch from manual labour and start a meal replacement company.
“If the rumoured numbers are true, Huel was sold to Danone for close to £900m (c3.7x revenues and c45x EBITDA), a fair reflection of the strong brand built, especially in UK convenience retail.”
British champion
THG owns Myprotein, the world’s largest online sports nutrition brand, and Moulding said the deal was another example of a ‘British champion’ being sold to an overseas company.
“This is the reality of the UK business cycle,” he added. “We are blessed with a nation of risk-takers and entrepreneurs, constantly churning out great businesses.
“Going global from the UK isn’t easy and often requires established partners to help break into new markets and sales channels.
“Danone has a solid track record and should be a great owner of the brand, taking it into markets much quicker than would otherwise have been possible.
“It’s especially nice to hear that Julian is set to receive £300m to £400m as payback for all the risk-taking, stress and sleepless nights over the years.
“Once he’s caught up on all those missed holidays and family time, let’s hope he goes again and starts another business from the UK.”
Hearn replied: “Thank you, Matthew, for the kind words. Yes, the AI pic is a tad off 🙂 – like your multiples. But overall, a fair and insightful post.”
Previously, Hearn built his first company, Mash Up Media, from scratch with a £1,500 investment.
Within three years, Mash Up Media was generating more than £2.5m in annual profit before being sold to Internet Brands in 2011.
He grew Huel to a valuation of £220m before it raised its first external investment in 2018 – £20m from Highland Europe.
Hearn said of the Danone deal: “What matters most to me isn’t the numbers. It’s the people behind them – the customers who backed us early, stuck with us, challenged us, gave feedback and helped shape what Huel has become.
“This next step is about taking that mission further. Danone is a B Corp operating in over 120 markets, with a long-standing focus on health through food. This gives Huel the infrastructure and global reach to do more of what we were built to do at a much greater scale.
“What doesn’t change is what Huel stands for. The mission stays the same. The focus stays the same. Your Huel stays the same. Huel remains Huel. And Huel has a lot more to do. Thank you to everyone who’s been part of the journey so far.”
Dragons’ Den star and Diary of a CEO host Steven Bartlett, a former director of Huel, hailed the firm as a ‘great British success story’.