Lee Cooper Owner Plots Sale Of Iconic Brand

The owner of the Lee Cooper clothing brand is putting it up for sale seven years after acquiring it from Matalan, the discount retailer.

I understand that Sun European Partners, a private equity firm, has appointed investment bankers to sell Lee Cooper.

Sun has owned the business, which no longer manufactures clothing, since 2005. It bought Lee Cooper for £30.5m in partnership with The 180 Group and Emerisque Capital, two other investment firms.

The current owner plans to approach a group of potential trade bidders such as Iconix, which recently bought the football kit brand Umbro, to gauge their appetite for a deal.

Sports Direct (Other OTC: SDIPF.PK - news) , which has assembled a range of sports and leisurewear brands, is also likely to be sounded out.

People close to the process said Lee Cooper was likely to fetch about £40m from a sale.

Sun, which has appointed DC Advisory Partners to handle the process, declined to comment.