Novabev Group board to discuss potential WineLab IPO on April 2

MOSCOW. April 1 (Interfax) - The board of directors of Novabev Group , one of Russia's leading alcohol producers and distributors, will discuss a potential IPO for the group's retail division WineLab at a meeting on April 2.

The board will "consider the possibility of a WineLab IPO," the company said in a statement.

Shares in Novabev rallied 8.6% to 583 rubles each as trading opened on the Moscow Exchange.

WineLab expanded its network 23% to 2,041 stores in 2023. Sales volume increased 27.5%, traffic 11.2% and the average check 14.6%. Excluding organic growth, like-for-like sales increased 11%. The company did not disclose actual sales volumes.

Online click and collect sales increased by 39% and the number of orders 41%. E-commerce accounted for 11% of totals sales. The network's storefronts appeared on all major marketplaces. WineLab and Wildberries launched click and collect project sales of alcoholic beverages in December 2024. More than 8.46 million customers participate in the Winclub omnichannel loyalty system.

JSC WineLab has charter capital of 544 million rubles.

The Novabev Group owns five distilleries, one pure spirit plant, the Golubitskoye Estate winery, its own distribution system and the WineLab chain. The group is also the exclusive supplier of wine from a number of global producers and brands.

Novabev cut sales of alcoholic beverages 4.2% to 16.2 million decaliters in 2024. It boosted revenue 16% to a record 135.5 billion rubles. EBITDA was practically unchanged at 18.7 billion rubles and net profit fell to 4.6 billion rubles, or 5.9 billion rubles excluding non-operating costs, the company reported.