New Look sale in doubt

The sale of New Look looked to have collapsed today after reports that the last remaining bidders had refused to meet the £1.8bn (€2.7bn) price-tag for the high street retailer.

It is understood that Nectar card owner Warburg Pincus, which had teamed up with US buyout group TPG Capital, and rival BC Partners withdrew their interest after failing to meet the reserve price for the business.

New Look’s private equity owners Apax and Permira had been hoping to fetch as much as £2bn (€2.96bn) from an auction of the group, but the two bidding parties were reported to be unwilling to pay more than £1.7bn (€2.5bn) for the retailer.

Apax and Permira, which both refused to comment, are now said to be considering last minute plans to refinance the business, or asking a third party investor to take an stake in the company.