The Chinese have made kiwi company Trilogy an offer that’s too good to refuse, the board says.

The natural skincare and fragrance maker says shareholders should jump on a $2.64 per share takeover bid by Chinese-based CITIC Capital, which is a 23 per cent premium to the previous day’s closing price of $2.14.

Known largely for their eponymous rosehip oil range and ECOYA branded candles, Trilogy (ASX:TIL) says the takeover leads them in the right direction for faster global growth.

Investors were buoyed by the news, the stock trading up 16 per cent in lunchtime trade at $2.49.

TIL share price movements over the past three months. Source: Investing.com
TIL share price movements over the past three months. Source: Investing.com

“The Board remains confident that TIL is well positioned to deliver growth in earnings across each of its four businesses in the long term,” chair Grant Baker said.

“CITIC Capital is viewed as a good owner of TIL as it moves into its next phase of growth. In particular, CITIC Capital’s strong relationships in the Asian and US markets provide an opportunity to unlock the potential of these brands, and achieve faster growth globally.”

The proposed new owner already has more than $28 billion of assets under management, and is touted as a pioneer in cross-border investments.

For the deal to go ahead, TIL will have to get approval from shareholders as well as the New Zealand High Court and New Zealand Overseas Investment Office. The first shareholder meeting to discuss the matter expected to be held in March 2018.

TIL reported revenues of $45 million in their six months to September 30, and profit increases of 13 per cent to take $3.6 million.

At the time, chief executive Angela Buglass told shareholders growth in international markets surpassed 200 per cent compared to the year before.

While they did not quite achieve their projected revenues of NZ$50 million for the six months, they said they were well on their way to achieve full year growth at a more than 10 per cent premium to FY2017.