UK fashion retailer All Saints have been rescued from the brink after a £100m deal with US private equity fund Lion Capital effectively saved the brand from collapse.
The label, which owns five stores in Ireland, currently employs over 2,000 staff in 62 stores worldwide. The last-minute deal will give La Senza owners Lion Capital a 65% stake in the company, which operates at the higher end of the high street.
“We are very excited to invest in a brand with such enormous international potential”, said Lion’s co-founder Lyndon Lea.
“All Saints, in our view, combines leading product and store design with an online presence well beyond many other retailers of its size. We look forward to partnering with Kevin and the management team to continue the success of the business.”
The deal, to be finalised next week, grants Lion 65% of the company, while fellow private equity fund Goode Partners shall receive 11% ownership.
All Saints, which had revenues of more than £200m in its most recent financial year, faced possible administration after failed Icelandic banks Kaupthing and Glitnir decided to put their stakes of the brand up for sale.
All Saints was founded in 1994 as a mens-only brand and opened its first stand-alone store three years later in London.
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