Well-heeled? You can bid for Jimmy Choo
JIMMY Choo, the upmarket shoe brand beloved by Princess Diana, Michelle Obama and the Duchess of Cambridge, is up for sale.
Although it has largely bucked the trend of a decline in luxury spending, it announced yesterday that it is reviewing its options, which could include selling the company.
Its majority shareholder, Germanowned JAB Luxury – which also owns Krispy Kreme doughnuts and beauty business Coty – backed the decision.
The news saw its shares soar by more than 10 per cent, making the company worth £721million.
Analysts said the brand was likely to be snapped up by rival luxury houses or Chinese, Middle Eastern and Russian
buyers. The company was founded in 1996 by Malaysian couture shoe designer Jimmy Choo and Tamara Mellon, a former accessories editor at Vogue magazine.
Its first store opened on Motcombe Street in London in 1997, and Princess Diana was one of its very first clients.
When the partnership between Mr Choo and Miss Mellon later soured it became one of the most prominent rifts in the fashion industry. He sold his half of the company to Equinox Luxury Holdings in 2001. Miss Mellon stepped
down from the company in 2011 and soon after announced the creation of the Tamara Mellon brand.
JAB Holdings is also reviewing its ownership of Swiss luxury footwear and accessories brand Bally and the British jacket brand Belstaff – probably best known as the maker of the coat worn by Benedict Cumberbatch in BBC1 drama series Sherlock.
Jimmy Choo and the other luxury brands are now seen as a non-core assets by JAB, which is shifting its focus to consumer goods.