Eu Yan Sang International has sold a controlling stake in Healthy Life Group to Allegro Funds

February 2017 — Eu Yan Sang International has sold a controlling stake in Healthy Life Group to Allegro Funds through the introduction of transformational capital.

Established in 1968, Healthy Life Group is Australia’s leading health food retailer. The group, with 63 stores, has a dedicated focus on providing quality health food products and superior advice, helping thousands of customers achieve and maintain optimum health and wellbeing.

Allegro Funds, founded in 2004 in Australia, is a private equity fund specializing in transformational capital.

Based in Sinpapore, Eu Yan Sang International is a leading integrative health and wellness company with a unique heritage in Chinese medicine and one of the largest Chinese medicine groups in Southeast Asia. HLG was their only business located outside Asia and was considered non-core.

Our role in the transaction

Oaklins' team in Australia advised Healthy Life Group (HLG), a wholly owned subsidiary of then Singapore listed Eu Yan Sang International (EYS), one of the oldest and largest Chinese medicine and wellness groups in Asia. EYS was itself subject to an agreed offer from a private equity consortium and some existing shareholders. The Australian team identified a strategic partner to take HLG forward which required financial and some strategic input. After approaching several private equity firms and investment groups, the team introduced HLG to a specialist investment firm, Allegro Funds, which is well known in Australia for focusing on the provision of transformational capital and other allied services. Allegro identified an MBI team and provided capital for HLG to execute its business plan, with EYS retaining a stake in the business going forward.