3i sells Hobbs to Foschini after 13-year holding

Financial details of the transaction remain undisclosed, though a July report by The Sunday Times said Foschini's initial bid for the business fell short of 3i's initial asking price of £80m.

According to publicly available documents, the business generated EBITDA before exceptional items of £7.8m in 2016.

Under the vendor's tenure, the business has expanded its international footprint and increased its focus on online sales. The company also overhauled its leadership in 2014, appointing former New Look CEO and chairperson Phil Wrigley as its chair and Meg Lustman – formerly chief strategy officer at Aurora, managing director at Warehouse and buying director at John Lewis – as its CEO.

Previous funding
3i acquired Hobbs in November 2004 from Equistone (then Barclays Private Equity) for an enterprise value of £111m. 3i invested £46m, with management providing £13m.

Company
Founded in 1981, Hobbs is a womenswear retailer with 140 outlets across the UK, including both concessions and standalone stores. In 2016, the business generated a turnover of £110m, according to the aforementioned documents.

People
Hobbs – Meg Lustman (CEO).

Advisers
Vendor – Rothschild (corporate finance).

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