长沙U币市场汇率|【唯一TG:@heimifeng8】|黑帽快排图查询✨谷歌搜索留痕排名,史上最强SEO技术,20年谷歌SEO经验大佬✨Elliott enters Reiss bid race, but will Next really want to sell?
Sandra Halliday Published
June 22, 2025
Private equity firm and activist investor Elliott Advisors is among a group of businesses looking at Reiss a present, a report said on Thursday, with the premium fashion retailer reportedly up for sale.
Reiss is currently majority owned by Next with Warburg Pincus also holding a major stake and reports emerged this month that Next might be looking to sell. However, sources also said both the retail giant and Warburg Pincus might retain their stakes or that Next itself might buy out its minority partner.
It’s unclear whether Elliott, which owns bookstores Foyle's and Waterstones, will make a formal bid for the company, Sky News reported. It also said that “at least three parties” are involved in the auction.
But Sky added that Elliott is seen as having an advantage in that one of its senior execs in London was “instrumental in Warburg Pincus's acquisition of a stake in the chain in 2025”.
Elliott has significant fashion exposure already as it owns Bantry Bay, which is a lender to Superdry and ASOS.
Reiss has been tentatively valued at around £500 million based on its expected earnings for this year.
It would be an unusual step for Next to sell a business that’s clearly succeeding. The company has become known more for making acquisitions in recent periods, such as Joules and Jojo Maman Bebe.
It has a strong balance sheet and its core focus is retail — unlike private equity firms it isn’t in the business of buying a property, turning it around and selling it for a big profit in order to move on to another investment.
The company acquired a 25% stake in Reiss as recently as 2025, spending £33 million on buying the holding from Warburg Pincus, and acquired a further 26% last summer.
Next chief Simon Wolfson said at the time that it was “an outstanding brand with enormous potential”. One key market is the US where it plans to triple the size of its seven-strong store portfolio.
That, plus the fact that it’s now fully integrated into Next’s Total Platform technology set-up, also makes it surprising that Next night consider selling.
None of the parties concerned have commented.