Cantor Fitzgerald is delighted to have recently completed a €5 million loan note fundraise for Powerscourt Distillery Limited (“Powerscourt Distillery”).
The distillery is located on the grounds of the Powerscourt Estate, a popular tourist destination which attracts up to 500,000 visitors per annum. Since its establishment in 2016, Powerscourt Distillery has accomplished many business milestones including successfully commissioning a fully operational distillery with the capacity to produce up to 1 million litres of pure alcohol per annum, launching their Fercullen brand in both the Irish and international market, opening a state-of-the-art visitor centre and currently has 900,000 of litres of mature and new fill stock maturing in its warehouse, located on the grounds of the estate. These are all significant achievements in the company’s development and demonstrate the “3 legs” that are key to any successful whiskey business – a commissioned distillery, supply of whiskey stock and distinct brand identity.
With continued growth forecast for the Irish whiskey sector, Powerscourt Distillery is well positioned to escalate the sales of its premium whiskey products on a national and international scale. Despite the impact of Covid-19 on “on-trade” sales, the company experienced a strong start to 2021, shipping more bottles of Fercullen in the first eight weeks of the year than they did over the duration of 2019.
Powerscourt Distillery is part of the Origin Green programme and is fully committed to sustainability. We are delighted to assist this leading Irish distillery through its next growth phase into a business that embraces ESG as a key pillar of its development. Operations have been developed to ensure the sustainable use of resources. Heat from process water is harnessed via heat exchangers for use in the distillation process and by-products of the distillation process are reintroduced to the local food supply chain. Spent grain from mashing, and pot ale from the first distillation, are collected by local farmers and fed to cattle.
The funds raised through the Cantor Fitzgerald loan note provide support to facilitate the growth and expansion of the business and will be used to finance a supply of additional “new fill” stock over the coming twelve months.
Powerscourt Distillery Chairman, Mike Peirce commented “We are delighted that Cantor Fitzgerald completed this Loan Note so successfully and professionally. We were especially appreciative of the confidence their team displayed , and the sense of partnership that developed throughout the exercise.”
Conor McKeon is Head of Corporate Finance at Cantor Fitzgerald Ireland.
Contact details for each individual team member can be accessed here on our website should you wish to speak with a Portfolio Manager or Account Executive.
