Love Hemp oil

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CBD brand Love Hemp has launched an on-demand delivery trial with Deliveroo.

A Love Hemp virtual store, with the company’s full range of CBD oils, capsules and edibles, is now live on delivery app service.

The initial launch is considered a trial by the company to “gauge consumer behaviour” before launching nationwide.

In the trial, Love Hemp products will be available on Deliveroo in a 6km radius of the company’s production facility in Croydon, South London. This delivery area is Deliveroo’s standard distribution from a single warehousing facility.

Dependent on the success of the trial, Love Hemp will launch nationwide on Deliveroo in 2022.

Love Hemp CEO Tony Calamita said: “Not only does Deliveroo provide us with greater visibility with consumers, but it also provides us with a new dimension to our consumer access – on-demand delivery.

“Deliveroo has over seven-million pre-registered consumers across the UK who are increasingly looking to the app to fulfil their day-to-day needs, of which high-quality CBD products are now one.

“Our ambition is to launch nationwide and utilise Deliveroo as a major distribution channel for Love Hemp.”

Love Hemp, which sells its products from a DTC website and in retailers such as Boots, Holland & Barrett and Ocado, revealed earlier this month that revenues had almost doubled as demand for the category continued to grow rapidly.

Revenues in the year ended 30 June 2021 jumped to £4.3m, compared with £2.7m in the prior 12 months, and gross profits totalled £1.3m.

Business with major retailers, including Boots and Holland & Barrett, increased 65% in November 2021 compared to the average monthly revenue from retailers in the previous 10 months as CBD became more mainstream.

Morning update

Elsewhere, it is a quiet morning on the markets as things wind down for Christmas.

The FTSE 100 opened 0.1% higher at 7,347.33pts as news began to emerge that the Omicron variant is not as bad as first feared.

Early risers this morning included Glanbia, up 4.8% €13.25, Bakkavor Group, up 3.9% to 132p, and WH Smith, up 2% to 1,463.5.

Losers included McColl’s Retail Group, down 2.9% to 11.5p, Parsley Box Group, down a further 2.9% to 35.5p, British American Tobacco, down 2.8% to 2,720.9p, and Hotel Chocolat Group, down 1.2% to 460.2p.

This is the final finance morning newsletter of the year. Wishing all readers a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Yesterday in the City

The FTSE 100 shrugged off early losses to finish up for the second day in a row even as Omicron cases continue to surge in the UK. London’s leading shares closed 0.6% higher at 7,341.66pts.

Shares in Parsley Box slumped 11.6% to 38p after it revealed it would tap investors for more funding in 2022 as the over-60s ready meal delivery firm struggled with ongoing supply chain issues. The business was down by as much as 16% during trading before making a partial recovery. The stock is now a long way of its 200p IPO price.

Risers yesterday included SSP Group, up 4.8% to 240.9p, McBride, up 4.7% to 57.6p, and PayPoint, up 4.6% to 639p.

Stocks in the red included Glanbia, down 3% to €12.65, Naked Wines, down 1.1% to 652p, and Kerry Group, down 1.4% to €112.41.