They are the retail moguls who made their fortunes by knowing every nuance of their trade. As the song says, they did it their way. So it is no surprise that as the High Street crawls towards a slow recovery, this Retail Rat Pack is making a collective return to the spotlight.
Owner-founders such as New Look’s Tom Singh and Matalan’s John Hargreaves have found it difficult to resist seizing the controls once more as they see their creations heading for the rocks.
And this weekend Tim Waterstone is locked in talks to buy back the book chain he founded almost 30 years ago.
In recent days, Waterstone and his Russian partner Alexander Mamut have made it clear to the book chain’s owner, HMV, that any bid would be about £35 million. But that falls short of the £45 million that HMV needs to continue a financial engineering at its main chain.
Waterstone, 71, has openly voiced his frustration with the direction and financial performance of the book store since he severed links a decade ago.
Waterstone wants to use his decades of knowledge to steer the business through the turbulence and inspire Britain’s book lovers once again. Stores would be redecorated and the obsession with cut-price bestsellers ended.
Oligarch Mamut also has a background in book retail, a love of the sector and a belief that an independent chain can be made to work.
However, sources said both Waterstone and Mamut were nervous because after four weeks of due diligence the total cost of restructuring remained uncertain. Estimates suggest that as many as 100 stores – about a third – may need to close.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article-1382198/The-return-Retail-Rat-Pack-Tim-Waterstone-leads-fightback-owner-founders-did-THEIR-way.html#ixzz1LHjtfAig
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