Greencastle Capital has completed its acquisition of Lovin Media Group for an undisclosed sum, just over a month after it purchased Joe.ie owner Maximum Media Network.
Under the terms of the deal, Lovin Media will be operated and managed by Iconic Labs. The Lovin Media brand will be retained as a distinct entity.
Lovin Media was founded by Niall Harbison in 2011. The online publishing company majored on entertainment and culture content relating to Ireland and Dublin in particular.
Harbison sold his stake in Lovin Media to Kouchin Holdings, owned by Smiles Dental entrepreneur Emmet O’Neill, in 2018, which resulted in O’Neill having an 85% stake.
The most recent account filings for operating company LD Lovin Dublin Limited show that it booked a loss of €713,000 in 2018, bringing accumulated losses to €1m. The company had a year-end net deficit of €513,000 and employed c.20 people.
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According to Greencastle Capital, its acquisition of Lovin Media makes it Ireland’s largest digital media house, reaching every social media user in Ireland more than once per week.
Joe Media, the UK subsidiary of Joe.ie parent company Maximum Media Network, was acquired out of administration by Greencastle Capital in October, where the principal is David Sefton. Greencastle has also acquired MMN’s business in Ireland.
Lovin Media will receive further investment over the coming months to maximise its editorial and commercial potential, according to its new owners. Content development will be a key initial focus.
John Quinlan, CEO of Iconic Labs, commented: “We are confident that Lovin Media will benefit from our extensive resources, specifically by having access to both an in-house production team and our in-house data, insight and planning.”
On November 13, Iconic Labs plc announced that it had issued over six billion new shares priced at £0.00012 each to raise gross proceeds of £748,000. The Placing Shares represent c.20% of the company's existing issued share capital.
Iconic Labs also announced that it has entered into a debt facility with Shard Merchant Capital Lltd for an aggregate amount of up to £1 million, with an initial drawdown of £500,000 from SMC.
According to Quinlan: “We believe the recent doubling of the base monthly management fee under the JOE media deal is a game-changer and builds upon the commercial traction that we are achieving with these underlying businesses - in which we have a 25% profit share.
“Since taking over the management of JOE the company has not only secured several major sponsorship contracts but has increased programmatic advertising revenue of 300%. We have also significantly increased revenues at TLE, with programmatic advertising revenue more than doubling in recent months."
Paul O’Donohoe, partner at Greencastle Capital, described Lovin Media as Ireland’s most recognisable lifestyle publisher brand. “It complements our commitment to the Irish market, and our belief that Irish brands are important to a wider media landscape."
