The acquisition by Hero and No.1 Capital comes after Mackmyra Svensk Whisky AB filed for bankruptcy on 19 August. Credit: ChristianLphoto/Shutterstock.

Swedish whisky producer Mackmyra Svensk Whisky has been sold two months after announcing plans to file for bankruptcy.

Lennart Hero, described as the “main owner” of Mackmyra at the time of its bankruptcy, has bought the distiller alongside No.1 Capital.

In August, Mackmyra said it would file for bankruptcy, admitting it had “not managed to secure sufficient liquid funds to continue operating the business mainly in the short term”.

At the time of bankruptcy, Hero was not only the principal shareholder in the company but also the distillery’s largest lender.

In a statement, the distillery said: “Our main goal with this deal is to retain as many of the skilled employees at Mackmyra as possible. We recognise and appreciate the enormous knowledge and passion of the staff, and we look forward to continuing to work with them to develop and strengthen the brand Mackmyra.

“Our vision is to lift Mackmyra to the next level. By adding both capital and strategic expertise we plan to further develop and refine the brand, with a continued strong anchoring in Swedish whisky tradition. Our goal is to make Mackmyra an even more prominent player on the global stage the whisky market.”

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Despite efforts to restructure last year, including job cuts and changes to sales structures, the distillery struggled to stabilise its finances.

The issuance of new shares and an overdraft loan towards the end of 2023 were insufficient to overcome its liquidity challenges, exacerbated when Swedish bank SEB decided not to extend Mackmyra’s overdraft facility.

In May, Mackmyra said it had received a stakeholder loan “from some of the company’s larger owners” to enable negotiations “with several industry players about in-depth collaborations and part ownership” in the second quarter of the year.

In its full-year results for 2023, Mackmyra posted net sales of Skr70.8m ($6.8m), down 13% year-on-year. It reported a loss of Skr93.1m in 2023, an increase on the previous year’s Skr18.4m.

Despite the financial turmoil, Mackmyra signed a UK distribution deal with Summerton Whisky Club in August.  

The distillery also released an updated core range, including its Svensk Ek and Svensk Rök single malts, marking a return to the UK market with a refreshed product line.