JD Sports buys Blacks Leisure Group
Published: 09 January, 2012
JD Sports Fashion buys Blacks from administrators but warns of store closures
JD Sports Fashion has bought Blacks Leisure Group from its administrators for £20m. Blacks has two fascias - Blacks and Milletts - and was trading from around 290 stores at the point of its administration but in a Stock Exchange announcement JD said: “We will evaluate the performance of each store in the coming months in order to reach a conclusion about the number of stores which will be retained long term.”
JD will be retaining a senior management team at Blacks led by the chief executive, Julia Reynolds. The statement continued: “Following the elimination of any underperforming stores and other cost reduction initiatives we believe the business can be run successfully as independent fascias within the group.”
At the same time MH Alshaya Group is in talks to buy part of the high street lingerie business La Senza. It is likely to take 60 stores under a pre-pack arrangement.
