Ailing vacuum cleaner company Godfreys has announced a profit downgrade of at least 30 per cent with sales plummeting 27 per cent following an unsuccessful television advertising campaign which did not resonate with its customer base.
As a result, the company’s board has recommended shareholders accept the takeover bid from 99-year-old major shareholder John Johnston, who owns 28 per cent of the company.
Johnston, who will turn 100 in July, was one of the founders of Godfreys in the 1930s.
He has made an all-cash bid of 32 cents a share through his family-owned Arcade Finance.
Since it listed in 2014 at $2.75, Godfreys has suffered falling sales and has undergone numerous changes in management.
Its shares yesterday were at 28 cents.
A takeover by Mr Johnston will see Godfreys removed from the Australian Securities Exchange and returned to private ownership.
