New Look’s owners have take a step forward in their plan to sell the fashion retail business with investment firms Alcentra and Brait having chosen Rothschild to run a strategic review.
They’ve controlled the chain since 2020 and Sky News reported that the review “is expected to see the company change hands next year”. It also said that the owners have received a number of “unsolicited approaches for the business from unidentified suitors”.
The loss-making company remains the second-largest womenswear retailer in the UK for the key 18-to-44 age group, with close to 340 stores and around 10,000 employees.
Its losses have been shrinking (a statutory pre-tax loss of £21.7 million last year, narrower than the prior year’s £88 million). But times remain tough on the high street as the problems encountered by major names such as River Island (a direct New Look competitor), Claire’s and Poundland have recently shown.
It hasn’t formally commented on the Sky News story, but did say that “the company is performing well, with strong momentum driven by a successful summer trading period and notable online market share gains”.
New Look has had a turbulent time in the past decade and went though a company voluntary arrangement in the wake of the pandemic.
But since its 2020 acquisition, it has refinanced and has focused on investment.
And earlier this year it said it would “supercharge digital growth” on the back of a £30 million investment from its shareholders.
The money is being spent on its data, AI and e-commerce platforms “to enhance [the] seamless, personalised shopping experience for its 10 million customers” and it aims to double digital orders from £500 million to £1 billion by 2030, targeting a 10% online market share by FY28.
Its digital focus seems to be paying off with around 40% of its sales now generated through digital channels. And Kantar data has shown it in second place online for its core age group, beating Shein and ASOS.
