Duke Road, which has owned the low cost retailer since 2007, is working with advisers at Deloitte on a sale of the enterprise, Sky Information learns.
The proprietor of The Unique Manufacturing facility Store, one among Britain’s greatest unbiased low cost retailers, is firing the beginning gun on a sale course of after greater than 15 years.
Sky Information understands that Duke Road, TOFS’ proprietor since 2007, is working with advisers at Deloitte on discussions with potential patrons.
Sources mentioned various commerce and monetary traders had expressed an curiosity within the firm, the probably valuation of which was unclear on Tuesday.
TOFS trades from about 180 shops throughout the UK, and it’s understood to be focusing on the acquisition of as much as 30 extra retailers from troubled retail rivals.
It sells manufacturers together with Adidas, Calvin Klein, Jimmy Choo, L’Oreal and Beneath Armour at substantial reductions to excessive road costs.
In 2018, the corporate closed roughly 30 shops via a restructuring course of known as an organization voluntary association.
That deal cleared the best way for hire cuts as Duke Road sought to place TOFS on a extra sustainable monetary footing.
Established in 1969, TOFS employs greater than 1,500 individuals and recorded earnings earlier than curiosity, tax, depreciation and amortisation final yr of near £7m.
It final modified palms in 2007, when Duke Road purchased the corporate for £68.5m from the personal fairness arm of Barclays.
That 15-year period is an unusually lengthy one by the requirements of the personal fairness business.
Analysts have mentioned that TOFS is more likely to be engaging to patrons at a time when inflationary pressures are driving customers to value-driven retail choices.
Duke Road declined to remark