Lazard Frères to Lead Sales Process for SMCP

PARIS – Three key shareholders of French fashion group SMCP have hired investment bank Lazard Frères to sell up to 51.2 percent of its share capital.

The parent company of the Sandro, Maje, Claudie Pierlot and Fursac fashion chains said it was informed on Thursday that the sale process has been initiated.

“SMCP welcomes this potential sale, which would enable the group to stabilize its shareholder structure and focus on pursuing its development strategy,” the company said in a brief press release. “This sale process is expected to last several months.”

The shares up for sale include:

• the 28 percent held by GLAS, trustee for the bonds issued in 2018 by European TopSoho S.à.r.l.
• the 15.5 percent stake now held and managed by ETS, previously at the center of a “missing shares” saga
• a 7.7 percent stake held by ETS, which is being managed by Alastair Beveridge and Daniel Imison from Alix Partners LLP, appointed as receivers by GLAS

“If the stake acquired in this context were to exceed 30 percent of the company’s share capital, the purchaser of this stake – acting alone or in concert – may be required to initiate a public tender offer for all SMCP shares,” the release said. “At this stage, however, there is no certainty that the process will be successful, and the final decision on the sale remains with the holders of the aforementioned shareholdings.”

The release noted that the entity ETS is subject to bankruptcy proceedings in Luxembourg and represented by a curator.

Last August, SMCP regained control of the 15.5 percent stake as a result of a ruling by the Singapore High Court, following a lengthy legal battle.

The stake has been at the center of a years-long shareholder dispute dating back to the financial collapse of Chinese conglomerate Shandong Ruyi, which had acquired a majority stake in SMCP in 2016 through European TopSoho ahead of the group’s 2017 initial public offering.