Office to be acquired by South African Truworths this week

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Nov 24, 2015

The sale of British footwear retailer Office to Truworths International for around £260 million should be completed this week, according to Sky News. The cut-price deal is substantially below the initial £300 million the Johannesburg-based fashion retailer was understood to be willing to pay.

Earlier in September Truworths International announced it was in talks with Office, which is currently owned by the private equity group Silverfleet Capital.

If an agreement is reached, Office would be Truworth’s first foray into Europe. The fashion retailer has 650 stores in South Africa, and 40 in 8 African countries including Ghana, Nigeria and Botswana. The company is said to be keen to diversify beyond is South African portfolio.

Office offers men’s, womens’s and sports footwear in a product range that is both mid-priced and affordable. It has 150 stores worldwide, as well as 46 concessiones in House of Fraser, Topshop, Harvey Nichols and Selfridges.

The sale has not been confirmed yet.