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Pandemic-related losses forced Ted Baker to put itself up for
sale in April and the company picked a preferred suitor the
following month. However, the bidder - reported to have been ABG
- in June decided not to make an offer, forcing Ted Baker to
consider other options.
Ted Baker has now reached an agreement with U.S.-based ABG,
whose brands also include Reebok, consisting of 110 pence cash
for each Ted Baker share, and which represents a premium of
about 18.2% to Monday's closing price.
The companies said the deal would not be revised unless a rival
suitor emerges.
"ABG believes there are significant growth opportunities for the
Ted Baker brand in North America given (its) ... strong consumer
recognition in this market," the New York-listed company said in
a statement on Tuesday.
Known for its suits, shirts and dresses with quirky details, Ted
Baker is in the midst of a turnaround plan and is looking to
benefit from a rebound in demand for office and leisure wear.
In May it posted a smaller annual loss of 38.4 million pounds
and said sales in the first quarter of the current year had
risen 20% year-on-year.
Ted Baker had also rejected several bids from private-equity
group Sycamore before launching its sale process, and Tuesday's
move is the latest in a flurry of deals for British companies,
made more affordable to overseas buyers by the weakness of the
pound.
Ted Baker's shares were up about 17% at 108p in early trading,
just shy of the offer price and still well short of their peak
in 2015 when they were trading at 2,972p apiece.
($1 = 0.8299 pounds)
(Reporting by Pushkala Aripaka in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry
Jacob-Phillips and David Holmes)
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