Ted Baker selects preferred bidder as Sycamore backs out

Ted Baker has announced it has selected a preferred counterparty to buy the business as US Private equity firm, Sycamore, has officially backed out of acquiring the fashion retailer.

The company said it is moving forward into a process of confirmatory due diligence, which is likely to take several weeks. 

However, Ted Baker said there can be no certainty that an offer will be made.

Ted Baker officially launched a formal sales process after receiving a number of unsolicited offers from US Private equity firm Sycamore Partners. 

However, last month (March) the company rejected a number of bid approaches made by Sycamore. The first two of the approaches valued Ted Baker at 130p-a-share and 137.5p-a-share – equivalent to roughly £250m. However, the current market capitalisation by share price for Ted Baker is £277.49m.

On 27 April 2022, the retailer announced that it had received a number of non-binding proposals from potential buyers as Sycamore is no longer participating in the formal sale process.