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British Fashion Chain Ted Baker Draws US Takeover Interest

The Ted Baker logo is seen at their store at the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets in Central Valley, New York, U.S., February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
The Ted Baker logo is seen at their store at the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets in Central Valley, New York, U.S., February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
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British Fashion Chain Ted Baker Draws US Takeover Interest

The Ted Baker logo is seen at their store at the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets in Central Valley, New York, U.S., February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
The Ted Baker logo is seen at their store at the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets in Central Valley, New York, U.S., February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly

Sycamore Partners is in the early stage of making a possible cash offer for fashion retailer Ted Baker (TED.L), the private equity firm said on Friday, in the latest sign of strong US interest in taking over British entities.

New York-based Sycamore, which specializes in deals in the struggling retail sector, has until April 15 to make a firm offer for the London-listed Ted Baker. Sycamore said there was no certainty an offer would be made and did not disclose what the terms might be for any deal.

Ted Baker said it has not received an offer but would evaluate any proposal, although it was confident in its independent prospects, Reuters reported.

Shares of the upmarket retailer jumped 20% on Friday but were still trading just above a pound each, compared with the nearly 30 pounds it was worth in 2015, giving it a current market valuation of nearly 220 million pounds ($289.26 million), Refinitiv Eikon data showed.

Takeover interest in British companies, ranging from defense groups to a leading supermarket, is its highest in years, as the pandemic and uncertainties linked to Britain's departure from the European Union have reduced valuations.

Ted Baker is in the middle of three-year turnaround plan under boss Rachel Osborne as it tries to boost its online presence and rebuild its image after profit warnings and accounting issues.

Osborne took charge in 2019 in a management reshuffle that included the exit of former chief executive Ray Kelvin following allegations of inappropriate behavior. Kelvin has denied the allegations and retains a nearly 12% stake in the company he founded in 1988 in Glasgow.

Ted Baker, which has nearly 400 locations mostly in Europe, North America and the United Kingdom, said in February it was "cautiously optimistic" about outlook for the current year as people slowly return to working in offices.

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Fashion

Elegance of the Edwardians on Display at Buckingham Palace

Queen Alexandra's coronation dress is the centerpiece of the exhibition. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP
Queen Alexandra's coronation dress is the centerpiece of the exhibition. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP
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Elegance of the Edwardians on Display at Buckingham Palace

Queen Alexandra's coronation dress is the centerpiece of the exhibition. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP
Queen Alexandra's coronation dress is the centerpiece of the exhibition. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP

A rare exhibition is exploring the glamorous lives and fashions of two royal couples who reigned over Britain during the Edwardian period as the country tipped ever closer to World War I.
"The Edwardians: Age of Elegance", which opened on Friday at the King's Gallery in Buckingham Palace, brings together more than 300 works from the Royal Collection that will be on display until November 23.

The centerpiece is the coronation gown Queen Alexandra wore on August 9, 1902, made of silk embroidered with thousands of gold sequins and designed by the French house Morin Blossier, AFP said.

Alexandra, daughter of King Christian IX of Denmark and sister of King George I of Greece, married Edward, then Prince of Wales, on March 10, 1863, in the chapel of Windsor Castle.

She was 18 years old. He was 22.

Alexandra was to remain the princess of Wales for almost 40 years until Edward succeeded to the throne on the death of his mother, Queen Victoria, in 1901.

Under Edward VII began the Edwardian period.

The royal couple ushered in a new generation after the austere last years of Victoria's long reign, when she largely withdrew from public life, mourning the death of her beloved husband, Albert.

'Pure drama'
For her coronation as the new queen, Alexandra decided against wearing the traditional white or cream robes, which had an ecclesiastical feel.

"She wanted that moment to be a moment of pure drama," said curator Kathryn Jones.

Realizing that electric light was to be "used for the first time in Westminster Abbey ... she chooses a gold fabric so that she shimmers with thousands of tiny spangles", Jones told AFP.

The dress is fragile and has not been on public display for some 30 years.

Conservators have spent more than 100 hours preparing it for the exhibition.

"It's a powerful example of Edward and Alexandra's attempts to balance tradition and modernity as they stood on the cusp of the 20th century -- a shining moment of glamour before the world was at war," Jones says on the exhibition's website.
Edward's gold coronation mantle is also on display, along with two thrones commissioned for the event.

Photography was still in its infancy but it allowed thousands of pictures of the new queen to be seen around the world, turning her into fashion icon and symbol of elegance of the times.

Alexandra was a keen amateur photographer herself and some of her snapshots taken with a portable Kodak camera are on display.

Two massive portraits of the couple greet visitors arriving at the King's Gallery.

One room depicts their lavish lifestyle through paintings of opulent receptions, concerts, regattas on the Isle of Wight, lavish costume balls, garden parties and their residences at Marlborough House in London and Sandringham in Norfolk.

As collectors, they amassed textiles, artworks, tableware, paintings, furniture, sculptures, plants, and rare books.

There is a copy of Oscar Wilde's "Poems" with a rare handwritten note by the author.

Edward also discovered a passion for Faberge and ordered several miniature figures of his favorite animals.

Visitors can admire paintings and water colors by such artists as Frederic Leighton, Lawrence Alma-Tadema and John Singer Sargent, as well as bronze sculptures by Alfred Gilbert.

Several rooms are dedicated to the royal couple's travels across five continents.

The exhibition also includes works collected by Alexandra and Edward's son, who became George V and was crowned in June 1911, with his wife Mary.

By then, times were changing, and instability and political turmoil roiled Europe and the British Empire.

The Age of the Edwardians was fast coming to an end.