By Mark Kleinman, City Editor
New Look, the fashion retailer, has proposed a deal to tackle its £1.1bn debt pile as it seeks to exploit the flagging fortunes of high street rivals such as Marks & Spencer.
I have learnt that the company has held talks in recent days with the holders of £750m of payment-in-kind (PIK) debt, an expensive form of capital that accumulates interest until it pays out on maturity.
Under a deal proposed by New Look's management, led by the chairman, Alistair McGeorge, the company would repay roughly half of the outstanding PIK debt, and move the remaining £375m into a new borrowing facility. The terms of the remaining existing debt were amended last year and are not a priority for New Look, according to insiders.
The retailer is in talks with the leading PIK-holders which include funds such as Anchorage, Alchemy, Oakhill and Canyon about the deal, although an agreement has not yet been reached.
New Look's equity is controlled by Apax Partners and Permira, two private equity firms, with management, including the founder and commercial director Tom Singh, also holding a significant interest.
Insiders said that the negotiations were at a preliminary stage and that all options remained open to the company, including raising new equity.
New Look emerged as one of the UK high street winners over Christmas, and under Anders Kristiansen, its new chief executive, the company is targeting overseas expansion, including into China.
It registered a 3.7% rise in like-for-like sales in the 14 weeks to December 29 as it benefited from a move away from the heavy discounting seen the previous Christmas. Its performance contrasted with that of some key rivals, including Marks & Spencer, which suffered a 3.8% fall in like-for-like clothing sales.
Announcing the festive trading figures, Mr McGeorge said: "The Group has delivered an excellent result in a challenging trading environment, and this performance is a testament to the success of our recovery programme and the strength of our brand.
"Once again customers have been tactical in their shopping through December, delaying spending until later in the month and searching out best value, which New Look was well equipped to deliver. Additionally, our online sales have been very strong, up over 50% on last year.
"Looking ahead we expect the economic outlook to remain challenging, however, we are confident in our ability to maintain the positive momentum being generated from the improved value of our ranges, our store refurbishment programme and continued growth of our online offer."
New Look is one of Britain's biggest retailers of women's fashion, with about 600 stores in the UK, a number that may shrink in the coming years as sales increasingly shift online.
The company declined to comment on the negotiations with the PIK-holders.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
New Look Seeks Deal To Tackle £1bn Debt Pile
Dengan url
http://slimingsuiter.blogspot.com/2013/04/new-look-seeks-deal-to-tackle-a1bn-debt.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
New Look Seeks Deal To Tackle £1bn Debt Pile
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
New Look Seeks Deal To Tackle £1bn Debt Pile
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar