British ready-to-wear retailer Slimma plc has acquired the British special-occasion wear retailer Frank Usher Limited for GBP 571,000 (EUR 668,800). Only three months after the management buyout, London-based Frank Usher had filed for bankruptcy, and lost many of its British customers.

Slimma considers the move as a crucial step towards the company’s future development. With a annual turnover of GBP 35m, Leek, Saffordshire-based Slimma is one of the largest womenswear retailers in the UK. By acquiring Frank Usher, Slimma intends to step up its international expansion.

According to Slimma CEO Stephen Thwaite, Frank Usher with its 110 employees achieves a turnover of GBP 16m, of which 50 % is accounted for by exports. Germany and Italy are the company’s most important foreign markets, accounting for 10 to 12 % of the group’s total turnover.

Tom Bowker, to date responsible for the label Coterie, has been named design director of Frank Usher. Approx. 40 % of Frank Usher’s production is carried out in the UK. Soon, a part of the womenswear production will be transferred to Poland, where Slimma’s products have been manufactured for the last 13 years.