Online electricals powerhouse AO World has bought musicMagpie in a deal worth around £10m.
AO World is set to pay 9.07p per share in cash for the Stockport-based second-hand electronics and entertainment retailer, which specialises in trading refurbished tech and pre-loved items like computer games, consoles, books, films, and tunes. The move comes after potential deals with BT and private equity outfit Aurelius Group, the name behind Footasylum, backed out last November.
Since then, musicMagpie has been on the lookout for a buyer, eager to clinch a sale. AO World's boss John Roberts said that adding a "top-tier trade-in service" is absolutely "essential" for the company's game plan. "To achieve our strategic ambition of becoming the destination for electricals, it is crucial for AO to enhance its consumer tech offering," Mr Roberts declared.
He praised musicMagpie's dedication to customer satisfaction and its exceptional brand, noting they're a good fit with AO's ethos, paving the way for a productive partnership. His counterpart at musicMagpie, chief executive and co-founder Steve Oliver, said: “I am very proud of the musicMagpie business and the trusted brand that we have created, providing consumers with a smart, sustainable and trusted way to buy, rent and sell refurbished consumer technology and physical media products.
“We welcome the opportunity to join the AO Group and believe it represents a natural custodian for musicMagpie as part of the next stage of the business’s development.”
The deal is expected to complete in the first quarter of next year. The tech resales giant has seen its stocks slump since debuting on the stock market in April 2021 with a value north of £200m. Post-pandemic trading challenges have seen sales suffer amid flagging consumer confidence, while its US counterpart, Decluttr, has struggled to make headway in the American market.
In the age where streaming reigns supreme, MusicMagpie's traditional trade-in business of unwanted DVDs and disc media has felt the squeeze, with book sales also waning. Launched back in 2007, the group began with second-hand CDs, venturing later into DVDs, books, and video games, and has since diversified into recycling mobile phones and various tech gadgets for resale.
Their online store made its digital debut in 2015, alongside Decluttr's launch in the US in 2012 and its online iteration in 2017.
