End of an era for Cell C owner Blue Label
Cell C owner Blue Label Telecoms has received the requisite shareholder approval to change its name to Blu Label Unlimited, starting 3 September 2025.
The group announced the proposed name change in July and set it down for a shareholder vote last week.
As rationale for the change, the company said it is undergoing a significant restructuring process that involves the separation of its telecoms and non-telecoms business units.
In light of the shift, the board said it would be prudent for the company’s name to reflect this new direction by omitting “Telecoms”.
The “abbreviation” of Blue to Blu is to reflect recent changes to the group’s trading name and logo across various marketing platforms.
The board said that Blu Label Unlimited is a more fitting representation of the “company’s evolving identity and business focus”.
With shareholders approving the change, the group will start trading under the new name from 3 September.
The JSE long name and short name of the company will change to “Blu Label Unlimited” and “Blu”, respectively.
However, the JSE share code and ISIN will not change. The company will retain its history and will remain listed in the telecoms sector on the main board of the JSE.
Blue Label was founded by brothers Mark and Brett Levy in 2001, deriving its name from the famous Johnnie Walker Blue Label whiskey brand.
When the company was first started, it was known as “The Prepaid Company”.
Pre-listing, whenever the brother signed a major deal, they would open a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue Label, write the details of the deal on the back of the bottle, and sign it.
By their telling, this sparked the idea of using the name “Blue Label” for their company, as it is an aspiring brand which suited the business at the time.
Massive earnings boost
Before the group starts its new era as Blu Label Unlimited, it will publish its final set of results as Blue Label Telecom on 28 August 2025.
In a trading statement to shareholders on Thursday (21 September), the company indicated that it would be giving its old self a massive send-off, anticipating its headline earnings to shoot up over 500% for the year ended May 2025.
The group said it expects its headline earnings per share to increase to between 380.85 and 383.80 cents in FY2025.
This is up between 517% and 521% from the 73.64 cents per share in May 2024.
The anticipated surge in earnings comes as the group also cautioned shareholders to trade carefully in its stocks, as it considers “various strategic options” to unlock value.
This includes a potential restructuring of the group, mainly around Cell C.
In May, Blue Label announced a restructuring that included Cell C acquiring Comm Equipment Company (CEC) in exchange for additional Cell C shares.
The Competition Tribunal has now unconditionally approved the proposed merger in which Cell C will acquire CEC from The Prepaid Company (TPC).
CEC and TPC are subsidiaries of Blue Label, where TPC has a majority stake in Cell C. Following the transaction, Cell C will exercise sole control over CEC.
“The terms and conditions of the proposed restructure, as well as ancillary transactions, are still being developed in consultation with the group’s financial advisers and remain subject to ongoing engagement and approvals,” it said.
“Accordingly, shareholders are advised to continue to exercise caution when dealing in the company’s shares until a further announcement is made.”
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