// Boohoo confirms it is in exclusive talks to buy 3 fascias from Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia Group
// It said it was negotiating with Sir Philip Green’s retail empire over the future of the Dorothy Perkins, Wallis & Burton brands
// Comes less than a week after Boohoo agreed a £55m deal to buy the brand & website of Debenhams
Boohoo has revealed that is now in exclusive talks to buy three fascias from Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia Group retail empire, as online fashion giants cap off a week of dominance over their brick-and-mortar rivals.
In a short statement to investors this morning, Boohoo said it was negotiating with administrators of Arcadia over the future of the Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton brands.
A deal could see the online retail giant buy the three, excluding the HIIT brand sold at Burton, although the board stressed that so far these are only discussions and that no deal is guaranteed.
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“The group confirms that it is in exclusive discussions with the administrators of Arcadia over the acquisition of the Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton (excluding HIIT) brands,” Boohoo said in its note to investors.
“These discussions may or may not result in agreement of a transaction. A further announcement will be made when appropriate.”
The news comes less than a week after Boohoo agreed on a £55 million deal to buy the brand and website of Debenhams, but will not take over the department store’s high street shops, which look set to close and cause at least 10,000 job losses.
Boohoo has also previously bought a number of other well-known high street brands out of administration, turning them into online-only operations, including Oasis, Warehouse, Coast and Karen Millen.
Because of this, it’s thought that any deal with Arcadia would not include its physical store estate.
Meanwhile, Boohoo rival Asos said it was in exclusive talks to buy other parts of Arcadia.
Asos is reportedly interested in the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT brands.
According to Sky News, bosses at Boohoo have indicated they might pay a little over £25 million for the Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton brands.
A deal could be announced as soon as next week, the broadcaster said.
Arcadia employed around 13,000 people and ran 444 stores across the UK before it entered administration at the beginning of December.
The Covid-19 pandemic and years of under-investment, as well as competition from online brands, ate into the business.
with PA Wires
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