N Brown is set to be acquired by a company owned by its non-executive director, Joshua Alliance, as it looks to move off AIM. Its share price rose more than 40 per cent after the announcement.
Simply Be
N Brown, which owns the brands JD Williams and Simply Be, has said the lessened appetite for UK small-cap companies and the costs associated with its listing make the investment platform unsuitable for the firm.
It said: “Bidco believes that, in light of N Brown’s current shareholder structure and very low trading liquidity, and the limited UK fund manager appetite for small cap consumer stocks, N Brown is not benefitting from being listed on the AIM market, whilst having to bear significant costs associated with its listing.”
Joshua Alliance, who is a non-executive director of N Brown, made an offer at 40p per share through the acquisition vehicle Falcon 24 Topco, which represents a premium on the Simply Be and Jacamo owner’s last closing price of 27p and an average price of less than 20p over the past year.
With the Alliance family already owning around 60% of N Brown’s shares, the acquisition is almost certain to succeed.
In a statement, the family expressed concerns about N Brown’s current standing, citing “very low trading liquidity” and limited investor interest in small-cap consumer stocks on the AIM market.
