FTSE 100 high street fashion chain Next is reportedly set to reach a deal to purchase the UK-based high street fashion chain FatFace.
Citing city sources, Sky News reported that the deal, which is believed to be more than £100m ($123.08m), could be announced by the end of this week.
FatFace specialises in selling clothing, footwear and accessories for women, men and children.
The multichannel retailer operates more than 180 stores in the UK and 20 in the US, as well as an international digital business.
In 2020, the fashion brand was acquired in a debt-for-equity swap by a consortium of banks and debt funds, including Alcentra, Goldman Sachs and Lloyds Bank.
In its latest annual results, FatFace reported that its sales returned to pre-pandemic levels and saw its debts reduce to £25.6m from £146.8m.
In May last year, the company reportedly hired investment bank Rothschild to find a buyer for the business.
The news comes closely after NEXT reported its total sales to grow 5.4% to £2.63bn ($3.23bn) in the six months to July 2023, against £2.50bn from the same period a year ago.
Last month, the company entered into an agreement to purchase Warburg Pincus’ entire 34% stake in Reiss fashion house for a total consideration of £128m ($161.10m) on a fully diluted basis.
In March this year, NEXT also agreed to acquire the brand name, domain names and intellectual property of CK Acquisitions, trading as Cath Kidston, for a total consideration of £8.5m.
