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John Hargreaves, the founder of fashion retailer Matalan, has announced his final offer to keep control of the company he founded in 1985.
According to The Sunday Times, he has teamed up with Elliott Advisers, a private equity firm, for a 50-50 bid for Matalan.
Hargreaves is reportedly expecting his bid to be successful due to his “extensive” knowledge of the company.
The rest of the finalised bids for the retail group supposedly include Matalan’s senior lenders, Alteri and OpCapita.
In addition, the senior lenders, which reportedly forced the sale process, are now bidding to take control of the chain and includes Invesco, Tredisor Investment Management and Man GLG, part of FTSE 250 investment firm Man Group.
The bidding process comes as Matalan has dealt with debts of over £500m, while in recent months, it has come under increasing pressure after credit insurers Allianz Trade slowly removed its cover for suppliers to the company.
Matalan is said to have informed bidders that it expects to make underlying earnings of £30m this year and reach £114m by 2026.
The successful bidder will be selected in the coming weeks. Matalan was contacted for a comment.
