"We hold all the cards."Well, perhaps not quite that bonkers M. Gounon was elected by French, private shareholders, not the debt holders, and if he were to try to rail road his backers into a hugely dilutive debt for equity swap, he'd follow his predecessors straight to the guillotine. He cannot be seen to do anything that might harm this motley crew.What happens after he's re-elected at the annual meeting later this month is another matter Compromise might indeed then be possible M. Gounon sounds like the best news Eurotunnel has had in quite a while. For the first time in ages, the Eurotunnel management is thinking positively and adventurously Don't hold your breath, but maybe, just maybe, M.
Gounon is the one to sort out the mess.Quorn on the cob for Premier FoodsPremier Foods has so far managed to make a pretty good living out of its quintessentially British collection of food brands. The trend among big multinationals to dispose of nationally orientated brands so as to concentrate their marketing efforts on a smaller number of global products, has played straight into Premier's hands. Unwanted and unloved by others, many of them in seemingly terminal decline, Premier has picked them up and given them new life.With better promotion and route to market, Robert Schofield,the chief executive, has made them grow again. There's little on the face of it that links Branston Pickle, Typhoo tea and Smash instant potato yet, unlikely though it may seem, the formula works.Quorn on the other hand is a rather different type of acquisition. More of a product than a brand (though Mr Schofield doesn't recognise the distinction), the venture capitalists have already had five times their money out it in little more than two years.
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At more than two times sales, Premier seems to be paying through the nose for the privilege of owning this fungus-based, meat substitute, originally developed by the chemicals group ICI. As a brand, it's already bigger than Heinz Tomato Ketchup, or Kellog's Corn Flakes.Mr Schofield is confident he can grow the product beyond its traditional "Veggie" appeal to a wider health conscious market. Recent sales growth is impressive - some 7 per cent a year for the past five years - yet despite the delight with which the stock market received the news yesterday, with the shares up nearly 8 per cent, I'm personally sceptical.Like Unilever's SlimFast, whose sales were poleaxed by the Atkins' diet, Quorn would seem quite highly vulnerable to changes in fashion or diet. Vegetarianism is actually in decline in Britain, and for anyone who eats meat, it's hard to see the point of Quorn as an alternative. If you fancy something else, what's wrong with vegetables or fish? Why have something manufactured at all?Still, Mr Schofield is confident of his ground, and with the shares some 50 per cent higher than when they were floated a year ago, the City is plainly backing his judgement. Premier promises more acquisitions of unwanted brands over the years ahead. The company ought perhaps to let this one bed in first.j.warner independent.co.uk.
