Slaughter and May and DLA Piper have taken lead roles on the cut-price sale of Poundland to retail-focused private equity firm Gordon Brothers.
Pepco Group, which has owned Poundland since 2016, yesterday (12 June) confirmed it had accepted a ‘nominal’ fee – widely reported to be around £1 – for the discount chain, which operates over 800 stores across the UK and Ireland.
Poundland has experienced a sharp decline in sales, prompting Pepco to write down €775m (£660m), primarily relating to goodwill, on its FY24 balance sheet.
A Slaughters team led by restructuring partner Ian Johnson and corporate partner Alex Dustan led the team advising Pepco, alongside finance partner Susan Hughes, restructuring partner Tim Newey, IP and tech partner Laura Houston and tax partner Gareth Miles. The Slaughters team worked closely with the Pepco legal team led by GC and company secretary Ned Staple.
DLA Piper advised Gordon Brothers on the transaction. The team was led by restructuring partner Rob Russell, supported by finance partners Jonathan Richards, Joseph Frew, Sarah Letson and Gavin Smith; real estate partner Andrew Walker; IP and tech partners David Booth and Satnam Sahota; and tax partner David Smith.
Commenting on the transaction, Russell said: ‘We are delighted to have played a role in the renewal of Poundland; a cornerstone retailer on the UK high street. I have no doubt that the business has a bright future under the stewardship of our valued client, Gordon Brothers.’
Gordon Brothers confirmed it had provided ‘up to £80m to support the management team’s proposed restructuring and turnaround plan for the British discount retailer’.
Both firms have longstanding relationships with the respective clients.
DLA’s Russell also led the team that advised Gordon Brothers on the sale of Laura Ashley to New York-based brand management company Marquee Brands in January this year. On that occasion, he was supported by Manchester-based corporate partner Jonathan Watkins and Massachusetts-based corporate partner Adam Ghander. Greenberg Traurig advised Marquee.
Meanwhile, a Slaughters team led by corporate partner Richard Smith advised Pepco on its 2021 IPO on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
