LK Bennett founder Linda Bennett has increased her stake in the company by purchasing the remaining equity from private equity owner Phoenix Equity Partners.
The deal was made for an undisclosed sum.
Bennett, who opened the first LK Bennett store in 1990, first sold her business in 2008 to Phoenix Equity Partners and Sirius Equity for an estimated £100 million.
While Bennett continued on as one of the retailer’s biggest shareholders, it was only earlier this year that she returned to the business as a consultant by chief executive Darren Topp.
Her increase in the stake of the company will allow her more freedom to restore the original vision of the business that she had, that being “a little bit of Bond St on the high street”.
“Linda is exceptionally well placed to support [LK Bennett’s] continued growth,” said Topp, who joined the retailer after leaving a similar role with the now-collapsed BHS.
“Linda has been working with the team since April of this year improving the product, growing the business and supporting the changes we began to make when I joined the company last year.
“We look forward to accelerating that change in the future to ensure the brand‘s continued success in today’s retail environment.”
Bennett said: “Working closely with the LK Bennett team over the past few months
has given me a real sense of excitement and confidence in the potential of the brand.
“We want to focus on making beautiful clothing and footwear for women of all ages.
“I‘m thrilled to be back in the business.”
Since its first-ever store in Wimbledon, London, LK Bennett has grown to over 130 shops in more than 30 countries, as well as hundreds of concessions.
It plans to expand further after store openings in China, Russia, Qatar, the US and the UK in the past year.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
