Summit Notebook
Exclusive outtakes from industry leaders
Talbots still has too many shops: shortseller
Apparel retailer Talbots announced a deal that will reduce its debt by about $330 million through its purchase of a blank check company.
The company, which caters to older women, has suffered since it bought trendier retailer J. Jill in 2006 for $517 million. But it resold it this year to private equity firm Golden Gate for $75 million.
Shawn Kravetz, who is president of Esplanade Capital, which focuses on consumer and retail stocks, had this to say about the J. Jill acquisition at the Reuters Investment Outlook Sumit:
“It will go down as being one of worst acquisitions in the history of retail.”
On the news of Tuesday’s deal:
“Talbot’s was in a turnaround before it was in fashion. ” “If the global financial crisis had lasted just another week or two, and they hadn’t effectively been bailed out but one of their investors, they might have gone away.”
