Mulberry Majority Shareholder Rejects Selling to Frasers

Signage is seen on the Mulberry store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)
Signage is seen on the Mulberry store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)
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Mulberry Majority Shareholder Rejects Selling to Frasers

Signage is seen on the Mulberry store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)
Signage is seen on the Mulberry store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)

The majority shareholder in luxury brand Mulberry on Sunday said it had no interest in selling any of its stake to sportswear and apparel retailer Frasers Group, in a statement designed to end Frasers' takeover attempt.

On Friday Frasers, Mulberry's second-largest shareholder, increased its bid after the brand, known for its handbags and belts, rejected an initial offer of 83 million pounds ($108 million) saying it undervalued the company.

In a response issued on Sunday, Challice, Mulberry's Singaporean backer which holds a 56% stake, said: "Challice believes that it is an inopportune time for Mulberry to be sold and particularly regrets the distraction that the possible offer is bringing to the company and its management team at this time.

"Challice has no interest in either selling its Mulberry shares to Frasers or providing Frasers with any irrevocable or other undertaking with regards the possible offer."

Under UK takeover rules, Frasers has until Oct. 28 to make a firm offer for Mulberry or walk away.

"Challice hopes that by making its position clear, Frasers will be encouraged to announce that it does not intend to make an offer for Mulberry," the Challice statement said.



Zara Owner Inditex Sees Good Holiday Season after Weak Third Quarter

FILE PHOTO: People shop during the opening of a Zara store after fashion giant Inditex resumed its operations in Venezuela under a franchise agreement, in Caracas, Venezuela April 25, 2024. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People shop during the opening of a Zara store after fashion giant Inditex resumed its operations in Venezuela under a franchise agreement, in Caracas, Venezuela April 25, 2024. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/File Photo
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Zara Owner Inditex Sees Good Holiday Season after Weak Third Quarter

FILE PHOTO: People shop during the opening of a Zara store after fashion giant Inditex resumed its operations in Venezuela under a franchise agreement, in Caracas, Venezuela April 25, 2024. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People shop during the opening of a Zara store after fashion giant Inditex resumed its operations in Venezuela under a franchise agreement, in Caracas, Venezuela April 25, 2024. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/File Photo

Zara owner Inditex said the start of the holiday season had got off to a good start after it reported weaker than expected quarterly results as rainy weather hit some key European markets.
The company behind Zara and other brands said its sales rose a slower than expected 7% to 27.4 billion euros ($28.84 billion) during the period, below the 8% expected by analysts.
Its net profit of 4.44 billion euros for the first nine months of 2024, up 8.5% from a year earlier, was below analysts' average expectation of 4.52 billion euros.
The company however reported a better start of the holiday season, with revenues rising 9% during the six weeks to Dec. 9 as the world's biggest fast-fashion retailer kept drawing in shoppers even as rivals struggled.
Revenue growth in the period, which includes the key Black Friday sales, was slower than the 14% increase reported a year ago, though.
"We had a strong start to the last quarter against a demanding comparable in the same period of 2023," Inditex's capital market director, Marcos Lopez, told Reuters.
He stressed that in constant currency sales growth was 10.5% in the first nine months of the fiscal year and the growth in constant currency during the third quarter was the faster of the year.