Two of Britain’s biggest footwear chains, Jones Bootmaker, which has approximately 170 stores and Brantano, which trades from about 120 shops, were put up for sale earlier this year.
Alteri Investors, the investment firm which was created to buy struggling retailers, is in advanced talks with the retailers’ Dutch parent company Macintosh. Macintosh is currently in the process of evaluating offers that Alteri has made, which are understood to be at the low end of the originally expected range.
A number of other bidders have submitted offers for Brantano and Jones Bootmaker, which are said to be valued somewhere in the region of £20 million.
If a transaction is agreed with Alteri Investors, it will begin to cement their portfolio which already shows interest in fashion business Austin Reed. Earlier this year, Alteri funded a three-year loan for the menswear retailer.
